Loving the enemy
by kavs
Summary: Scorpius and Rose have been found out! They've been dating and the older generation of Weasleys and Potters are not happy. Meanwhile, Lily has her own secrets...
1. Chapter 1

Rose was late

Rose was late. And she HATED being late!

Rose slipped her feet into her high heeled, black sandals and grabbed her purse. With one final look in the mirror to make sure everything was in order, she ran out the door.

"I look good" Rose thought to herself. She had bought the perfect, black dress. It was a sleeveless black velvet sheath that hugged her body like a second skin and fell right below her knees. The neckline was low enough to show a bit of cleavage but high enough to still add a little mystery. Her hair was done up in a French twist and she had pearl drops in her ears.

Rose walked into the five star restraunt 10 minutes late and scanned it for her handsome, blond date.

"May I help you?" asked the hostess.

"Yes. I'm a little late and was looking for Mr. Malfoy." Rose replied still scanning the area.

"Oh, yes. He's here, Ms. Weasley.Let me direct you." With a snap of the hostess's fingers, a waiter showed up.

"Show Ms. Weasley her table"

A surprised Rose followed the waiter into the elevator and all the way to the rooftop. As she stepped out of the elevator, she saw Scorpius. He was giving her a lopsided smile and holding a red rose. There, on the roof, was a lone table with two champagne glasses.

"Scorpius…"

Rose ran to hug him and crushed her lips on his. He readily responded and his lips parted to make way for her tongue. His hands roamed her back while hers gripped the hair at the nape of his neck.

Rose tilted her head back and looked around. The view was breathtaking.

"You are such a wonderful boyfriend. I wonder what next year will be like."

"Next year? We'll probably be working our butts off. You as a Healer and me, an apprentice auror."

"Don't remind me." Rose pouted thinking of the hardwork ahead.

"Please! You love studying."

"I do. But I hate that we'll be so busy next year that we won't be able to enjoy ourselves"

"We have a lifetime, my love. An entire lifetime" Scorpius said and he leaned towards her to capture her mouth once again.

Rose walked home two minutes before her curfew ended wearing jeans and a light blue shirt.

"Right on time." Rose's dad said as he rose from his chair near the fireplace. "I hope you had a nice time with Lily."

"Yeah. We did. Went to this wonderful café right across the ministry." Rose lied.

"Well, I'm tired. Just wanted to make sure you got back fine. Goodnight hon."

"Goodnight, dad" Rose gave her dad a peck on the cheek and went to the kitchen. Hugo and Albus were sitting on the counter eating ice cream.

"So? How was it? Your romantic dinner with the Slytherin king." Hugo asked.

"So romantic!" Rose squealed as she cast the muffilo spell. " He took me to this wonderful res…"

"We know. He's been planning this for months." Albus interrupted Rose.

Albus and Scorpius were good friends. The older Weasleys and Potters were unhappy with their friendship but grew to tolerate it. If they knew that Rose had been dating Scorpius for more than 3 years, they would have killed her. Literally.

"Hope lily had a good time. Just had time for a quick bye before she went home.", said Rose.

"Yeah. She just sent me an owl. Mission accomplished", Albus said.

Lily was dating Albus and Scorpius's friend, Drake. They were hush-hush about their relationship mainly because Lily was in her last year at Hogwarts and her parents would never let her date a 19 year old. Well, that wasn't the whole truth. The truth was Drake never wanted lily's parents to know. No one, including Lily, was exactly sure why.

Drake was always the quiet, almost moody, kind of guy. He was the beater on the Slytherin quiddich team. Lily was attracted to his mysterious demure. He was handsome enough with black hair that hung to his shoulders and piercing black eyes. He was tall and muscular. The total opposite of Lily in appearance. She was 5'3" but very slim. She had this very dainty, innocent look about her. The big, bright green eyes of her dad and her mother's fair coloring completed her beauty. She was the only blond in the Potter household.

"What did Drake and Lily do?" Hugo asked.

"Lily said they went to Muggle London and had a cheeseburger. They took a stroll in the park and he dropped her off at the café." Rose said.

"Typical Drake." Albus said.

"They are so different. I don't know what Lily sees in him." Hugo stated.

"What are you talking about? They are made for each other. She's the Ying to his Yang. They're so different yet they compliment each other." Rose said

"Drake's so …Drake. He's quiet and she talks on and on and.." Hugo said moving his head round and round.

"Exactly. They are so unlike each other that they are perfect"

"Well, they better tell dad and mom soon. I think they suspect something." Albus said.

"Why? Did they ask you something?" Hugo questioned.

"They asked James if she was dating anyone. But since he doesn't know about Drake, I think she's safe"

"For now." Rose said taking a spoon from the drawer and helping herself to Hugo's ice cream.

"What about you? When are you going to tell mom and dad?" Hugo asked Rose

"I will. I have to but dad is so stubborn. I mean they barely acknowledge Scorp when he comes for Christmas. They all love Drake but hardly even glance at Scop. He's not his dad. I mean, he is just like how his dad is now not like his dad used to be.. But they will never see past that especially dad."

"Ahem." Three heads snapped to where the sound came from. Hermione Weasley stood at the entrance of the kitchen ina red robe with a serious expression on her face.

Rose mumbled the counter spell for muffilo. "Hi mom. Want some ice cream?"

"Albus, I think you should be going home. Hugo, to your room. Now." Hermione said. Her voice held no room for argument. "Rose, sit down. And next time you cast a spell, make sure you cast it right."

Rose's face lost all color. Her mother heard what they were talking about. She was so dead. The boys disappeared in seconds.

"Now, Rose. Start talking."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Rose took a seat at the kitchen counter while her mom took out all the ingredients needed for hot chocolate.

Rose was fidgeting in her seat and playing with a strand of her red hair. The silence was uncomfortable but more welcome than the screams that she was sure would soon engulf the kitchen.

Finally, Hermione Weasley sat down opposite her daughter. "Start from the beginning. And don't leave out anything." Then she took out her wand and cast the muffillo spell.

"It just happened mom. He's Albus's friend and he was always around. He was just so nice. Not just to me but everyone including the Gryffindors. He's smart and …' Rose was talking at lightning speed.

Hermoine placed her hand on Rose's. "How did it start, honey?" Hermione asked gently.

"It was so sudden and so unplanned. We were in the great hall decorating for Valentine's day and…

**Flashback**

_"Hey, Ginger! Do you want me to alternate the red and pink hearts or red and white hearts on these ceiling hanging things?" Scorpius said waving his wand around._

_"I hate the name "Ginger". So, I beg you, stop calling me that or I'm going to change the color of your hair to the exact same color as mine and I'll make sure that to make the spell extra strong so that it will not fade for at least a month."_

_Rose took a deep breath. " And can you alternate all three colors? Red, pink and white and make sure there is only one row over each house table. I don't want to overdo the hearts"_

_"Fine." Scorpius said in a bored tone. He muttered a few spells and the strand of hearts magically appeared above each house table._

_Rose completely missed Scorpius checking out her posterior as she added the final touches to the punch fountain._

_"So, whom are you going with?" Rose asked oblivious to what his eyes were feasting on._

_"No one."_

_"Poor you." Rose said faking pity. She released small flying harps from a box near the fountain. "Got turned down by every girl in Hogwarts. I'm not surprised."_

_Rose picked up her wand, whirled around and pointed it at him. "You-are-the-most-arrogant-self-centered-boy-ever-to-set-foot-in-Hogwarts." She puctuated each word by shooting out baby cupids from the tip of her wand. "James excluded."_

_"I can have any girl I want. I'm just keeping my options open. You never know who's going to break up with their date and need a shoulder to cry on."_

_"You're preying on the misfortunes of these heart broken girls. Nice. Can I add "cad" to your never-ending list of qualities?" She directed the baby cupids to the front of the great hall._

_Scorpius smirked at Rose who laughed at his expression. That's when it happened!_

_Rose tripped and would have fallen but Scorpius's quick reflexes took effect and his hands moved to grab her waist and pull her back on her feet. Her back hit Scorpius's chest hard._

_"Oh! Thanks. That was close." Rose turned to thank him. But at that moment, something happened._

_With the musical mini harps slowly floating past them, the sound of the punch fountains, the smell of hundreds of red roses in vases all over the great hall… Rose was not sure what triggered her feelings or who made the first move. All she knew was her hands were around Scorpius's neck and her lips were on his. He tasted like pumpkin juice and chocolates._

_One of them moaned. Rose was not sure who it was but she did not want this to end. She opened her mouth and deepened the kiss. Scorpius's hand was on her lower back and the other in her hair._

_"WHAT THE ….?" Albus's voice sliced through the air._

_That ended the magic of the moment but it was the start of Rose and Scorpius._

_--_

Of course, Rose deleted all the finer details. She told her mom how they started dating in her 5th year and how every Weasley, Potter and Malfoy of her generation knew. She told him how his parents walked on them kissing on the train and how they were ready to accept their relationship.

"I love him, mom. I really, really love him." Rose ended her story.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Hermione asked.

"Because I was scared."

"Scared of what exactly?"

"Of how you would react. How dad would have totally blown his top off and yelled at me."

"I hate to tell you this. But you're a big girl and you should have told us regardless of how dramatically your dad reacts."

"I know" Rose said sullenly.

"But I don't think that's the reason you did not tell me."

"What?" Rose frowned "What do you mean?"

"I know that you know how I would have handled it. I also know that no matter how much your dad rages and screams, you are as stubborn as him and strong, like me. You could have handled it. You just wanted to enjoy yourself"

"What do you mean?"

"If we all knew, this relationship would become "real". A real relationship. You would have to make grown up decisions. You would have to stop sneaking around and finally, be mature. You did not want that."

"No. I mean…No. I …I don't think so. I mean, I know…"

"Think about it." Hermione said, as she rose from her seat. "It's after midnight. I'm going to bed. Goodnight, honey. I love you." Hermione went over to her daughter and kissed the top of her head. She took her hands and placed it on her daughter's cheeks raising it up and looking into her blue eyes. "If you love Scorpius, you have to tell your dad. If not, why give your dad a stoke."

Hermoine walked out of the kitchen leaving her daughter to think things over.


	3. Chapter 3

Rose was late

Chapter 3

Rose had just closed up the boutique that she was working at and was waiting for Albus to pick her up. She looked up and down the road and then her watch. She had another 10 minutes to think before he picked her up.

All the Weasley grandchildren gathered once a month at their grand parents house for dinner. Well, all the Wealeys who weren't in Hogwarts. It gave the cousins time to catch up and give their grand parents a chance to spoil their grandkids.

Rose stomped her feet in the vain hope that it would warm her up a bit. It was the end of January and shops all around were getting geared up for Valentine's day.

"Ready to go?" Albus's voice invaded her thoughts.

"Yeah. Let's pick up some flowers for grandma." Rose said.

"Sure. Do you know another 6 more months and 4 more grandkids will be added to the monthly Weasley dinners?"

"Yeah. Can't wait for Lily to finish and come home again. I need some girl company."

The Weasley clan was still dominated by boys. Lily, Rose and Rachel, Uncle Charlie's daughter, were close. Unfortunately, Rachel went to Drumstrang, much to the dismay of the Grandma Weasley.

Albus was a best friend, brother and rival all rolled into one. Not rival in the bad sense but there was a bit of competition between them when it came to studies. But he was always there for her especially when it came to Scorpius.

Rose leaned over and took Albus's arm and looked at him. Albus looked like a taller, broader version of his father. He had a bit of an insecure streak in him but with the Great Harry Potter as your dad, it's hard to measure up.

"What?" Albus asked Rose.

"Nothing." Rose shook her head. " So, who's coming tonight?"

"Jean has to work late tonight. Teddy and Vicky will be there. They are leaving Dave and Marie with Uncle Bill and Aunt Fleur. Philip will be there a little later. He has to finish up things at the Ministry."

Jean was the eldest Weasley grandkid. He worked at a law office. Victorie was 2 years younger than him and been married to Teddy for 5 years. Philip was the youngest on Bill Wealey's household.

"Andrew?" Rose asked.

"I think he bailed out. Something about a club opening up in muggle London but his cover story is that he has a paper due." Andrew was the wild child of Uncle Percy and Aunt Penelope. As an only child, he had a free rein.

Another single child in the clan was Jack but he was at a university in New York. Uncle George and Aunt Alicia had a rocky relationship. They married and divorced and married each other again.

"So, it's going to be Vicky, Teddy, Philip, James, you and me. Small crowd."

"Small and cozy. Now, tell me about what's happening between Scorp and you."

"I hate to admit it but there is some truth in what my mom said. I guess we're comfortable in our relationship and I'm scared to ask the big questions. Are we getting to that serious place towards marriage? Are we going to make it in the real world when we actually start our careers? I'm confused!"

"Hey! Come on. You're 19. You don't need to worry about marriage and babies. And you start as a Healer-in-training next year. Scorpius will be in the auror program. Tell people and see what happens. Let nature take its course. You might make it or you might not. But if you don't have an actually "out-of-Hogwarts" relationship, you might never know."

"Did Scorpius say anything?" Rose asked.

"No. But he wants you to tell your dad and the rest of the family." Albus said.

"I will. Next month. After Valentine's Day. It's not fair to Scorpius. I don't want him to be my secret."

"Let's pick up the pace or we'll miss the crab puffs." Albus said dragging Rose towards the floo station.

"Scorpius, stop it!" Rose giggled softly. "There are people watching."

"What? I warned you. I said no chick-flick." Scorpius was kissing Rose's neck.

Rose had dragged Scorpius to a muggle movie theater to see her favorite actor, Orlando Bloom.

The two of them usually spent Fridays in muggle London. They loved it. They usually went to a restaurant and did a lot of shopping. Muggle things were cheaper than Wizarding things and also more interesting.

"Hummm…" Rose moaned.

"Let's go to my place. I'll make it worth your while." Scorpius spoke seductively.

"Oh no, Mr. Malfoy! How can you suggest such a scandalious thing." Rose mockingly objected.

"Love, if you don't get up soon, I'm going to throw you over my shoulder and carry you back home."

"Promises! Promises!" Rose said. Scorpius made a move as if to carry out his threat.

"Ok. Ok. You really are in a hurry."

Scorpius and Rose walk out of the theather and move quickly towards the closest floo station. They stumble out of the fireplace, kissing. Hands all over and practically ripping each other's clothes. They walk slowly towards the sofa and Rose pushes Scorpius on it.

Rose jumps on top of Scorpius, her hands running through his hair. "I love you. I love you so damn much." Rose doesn't wait for his response and crushes her lips on his.

"Let's continue in the bedroom. I don't want the roommates to interrupt."

Scorpius lifts Rose up. Her legs were wrapped around his waist as he carried her into his room.

--

Rose opened her eyes and looked at the time. It was 10:56pm. Rose slowly, so s to not wake Scorpius, slid out of bed and picked up her clothes before heading to the bathroom.

Rose had 1 more hour before she curfew. Not that she should be having one at her age but she went along with it just to please her dad as well as to avoid the "as-long-as you-live-under-my-roof" speech.

Well, next year she'll be on her own. She had gotten accepted at St. Mungo's Healer program but differed it to the next year. Scorpius had also gotten accepted to the Auror Program but he wanted to work with his dad for a year before training.

Auror training was gruesome and the trainers were tough. There would be weeks, sometimes months of not seeing or hearing about the aurors and their trainees. Even though the threat of Voldemont was over, there are still dangers and problems in the wizarding world.

Knock. Knock.

"Need to pee. Had a barrelful of firewiskey." Drake's voice came through the door.

The master bedroom in the apartment had it's own bath but Albus won the coin toss while Drake and Scorpius had to share one. Luckily, both bedrooms had direct access to the bathroom.

"Hello, Drake." Rose swung the door open, fully dressed with a smile. "I hope Lily know what you do on Friday night."

Drake looked startled but quickly gathered up his bearings."

"Pee now. Talk later."

Rose walked out of the bathroom into Drake's bedroom. She looked around. It was surprisingly tidy. Even the bed was made which surprised Rose. She sat down on it. She was neat but why make the bed when it would get messy 12 hours later?

Rose heard the bathroom door open. "Should I tell Lily what you've been up to?"

"Tell her. I don't think she'll care. She just broke up with me." Drake said angrily. His mouth was clenched.

"What? When? I just got an owl from her. She didn't say anything." Rose said concerned.

"Why don't you ask her?" Drake kicked a chair over. He stood with his face lowered and his eyes closed. He was trying to get a grip of himself.

Rose didn't know what to say to him. She had never seen Drake show much emotion. He was so guarded. Not that he didn't joke around. He did but he never really spoke about himself. Never went anywhere during the holidays except for the few times he spent with either Albus or Scorpius.

"Is everything alright here?" Scorpius had entered the bedroom looking dishelmed.

"Lily broke up with Drake." Rose said.

"Did you guys have a fight at Hogsmeade today?" Scorpius asked sitting down next to Rose on the bed.

Rose had forgotten that the third Friday of every month was Hogsmeade night. "What happened?"

"I don't know. I was a little late and she was upset. I shrugged it off but she was giving me the silent treatment. I should have let it go but I asked. I opened my big mouth and asked her what was wrong. She said that I didn't care about her. I don't care! Why would she think that? I'm with her. I've been with her for almost 2 years. Why would I be with her if I didn't care." Drake sat on the floor with his head in his hands.

Rose and Scorpius shared a look. Scorpius went over to Drake. "You're drunk, man. I'll put you in bed and we'll talk in the morning." He looked over to Rose. "Three more minutes to curfew."

"Forget it. I'm too old to have a curfew. I'll stay here to see if Drake is ok." Rose was concerned. Drake was usually levelheaded and this fight must have thrown him off.

Rose went to the kitchen to start making Drake a potion to prevent his waking up to a hangover the next morning. It would take 2 hours to brew. She mixed all the ingredients and placed it in the cauldron.

Rose then sent an owl to her dad saying that she would not be coming home tonight and she was staying with a friend.

Scorpius walked up to Rose just as she sent the owl. "I'll stay up. You can go and get some rest. Tomorrow all hell will break loose at your place."


	4. Chapter 4

Rose was late

Thanks for all your reviews. I appreciate you taking the time to write a few words of encouragement and advice.

No Ron Weasley showdown this time. Next chapter for sure.

CHAPTER 4:

Drake woke up to realize that sunlight from his window was right on his face. He groaned and turned around. He was constantly replaying his fight and breakup with Lily in his mind and mentally kicking himself.

Flashback:

"Why are you angry?" asked Drake.

"Nothing." Lily said as she sipped her tea.

"It's not "Nothing" if you keep glaring at me like a Hippogriff does before it attacks." Drake said.

"Fine. Do you want to know? You don't care about me at all. You're never owl me and you're never on time. You don't act like I'm your girlfriend in front of other people and I'm starting to doubt that we ever were exclusive. Are you embarrassed of me or something? And I hate the way you just assume I'll be there for some ball or event…"

"Hold on." Drake interrupted Lily. "What do you mean by that? We are dating. We are not seeing other people. That means you are my steady girlfriend. Why do you "assume" things? I'm not embarrassed of you. I'm uncomfortable showing my feelings in front of other people. You know that. I've told you almost everything about my life. Things that I've not told a soul including Albus."

"I need you to owl me. I need to know that we are together. You meet me every Hogsmeade trip but nothing in between that. It's not enough! I need more of you. Once a month is not enough for me. I need to tell my parents about us. I …"

"I'm happy with the way things are. I'll owl more often if you want me to but seriously, there is nothing going on in my life that's interesting enough to owl you about." Drake said.

Lily looked at her cold tea and stirred it with a spoon. She didn't say anything but her eyes were threatening to overflow with tears.

"What do you want me to say? I'll say it. I don't know what you want." Drake's voice held the desperation that he felt. "You know how I feel about you."

"That's just it. I don't. I feel like I'm your friend who you occasionally snog. I don't feel like I matter. Even when we started dating, I didn't know if we were dating. You kissed me in the library and that's it, we're a couple?" Lily asked. "I don't think you care about me. You just find me easy to talk to."

Drake totally shut down. Lily was leaving him. She wanted to breakup with him but didn't want to say it out.

"Ok. We'll do it your way, Lily" Drake said, getting up and throwing some galleons on the table. "You want to breakup, then we will."

"I…"Lily said while trying to hold his hand.

Drake moved away and walked quickly to the door, opened it and apparated out of Hogsmeade.

The next thing he knew, he was drunk at a pub near home. Luckily, he was sober enough to walk home.

"Hey. Have this potion or you'll have a major headache," Drake said entering the room.

"Thanks." Drake said gratefully. His head was throbbing and his throat was dry.

"You have 5 owls from Lily. Want me to get it for you?" Drake asked.

"No. Burn it. I don't want it." Drake was feeling betrayed and didn't want to read Lily's owl and add anger to his emotions.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not in particular."

"In your half-drunken state you did tell me what your fight was about." Scorpius said.

"Then why did you ask?" Drake asked.

"Just wanted to hear your sober point of view." Scorpius sat on the chair next to Drake's bed and threw his feet on the mattress.

Drake and Scorpius sat in silence.

"Well, I'm off." Rose peeked her red head in.

"Bye and good luck." Drake said.

"You're awake. Thanks. I'm nervous" Rose came into the room and put her arms around Scorpius's neck.

Drake felt a pang of jealousy. Here they were being all supportive and lovey-dovey to each other and he was in bed, half-drunk and reeling from the breakup.

"So, what are you going to tell your dad?" Drake asked.

"The truth. It's about time and mom will be there. So, I'll have some backup. I hope!" Rose said.

"I can come with you." Scorpius said.

"And add fuel to the fire? No but thank you. You're going to be in trouble soon enough. Dad's going to give YOU a tough time at auror camp in 6 months time."

Drake looked at Scorpius with an amused look. "Yes. Auror camp is just around the corner for you, isn't it?"

Scorpius gave his friend a hard glare that Rose missed. He looked at Rose and said, "Honey, you better get going."

Rose kissed Scorpius and left the room.

"Boyfriend having secrets from girlfriend. Now, I'm in the mood to talk." Drake got up and sat cross-legged on the bed. And in his best girly voice said, " So dish. What's happening?"

Scorpius threw a cushion at Drake's head. "I couldn't tell her. She's so happy that I'm choosing a career path like her dad. She thinks it's a bonding point or something. If she finds out that I've decided to stay on in Malfoy Industeries, I'm afraid I'll disappoint her. I'll tell her once her parents get on board with Rose and me being together."

"That's never going to happen. Ron Weasley is the most stubborn man on the planet. He hates your dad and you and every Malfoy man that was, is or will be."

"He's going to hate his own grandkid. Nice man."

Scorpius was shocked that he even said that out loud. Drake laughed.

"You're really serious about her."

"Yeah. I am. I'm not thinking marriage in the near future but one day."

Scorpius looked at Drake. "So, about last night…?"

Drake groaned and tipped over so that he was sprawled on the bed. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Not that. I mean does Lily know about you being who you are?" Scorpius asked.

"A bit. I told her I'm the grandson of a notorious, hated death eater. She did try to get some info but I didn't tell her the whole story."

"You make it sound worse than it actually is."

"The truth always is." Drake said.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Rose apparated to the front of her house and walked through the gates. With all the security measures that her parents had placed on the house, no one could apparate inside the house. She usually went in through the back door but this was one time that she wished she could enter the house by climbing the drainpipe to her room.

"Face the music, Rose," she told herself.

Rose placed her hand on the door knob, took a deep breath and she turned it. But the door flung open and startled her.

"Dad," Rose shouted. " you scared the crap our of me?"

Ron had opened the door. His nostrils were flaring and his eyes were bloodshot.

"Where have you been? You have totally disregarded your curfew and worried your mother half to death." Rose looked at her mom who was sitting at the kitchen table calming eating toast and jam.

"Dad, we need to talk."

"You bet we do. What the hell were you thinking staying out all night?"

Rose moved past her dad and sat next to her mom at the table.

"Breakfast, dear?" Hermione asked.

"No thanks. I'll have a cup of coffee though," said Rose.

"What's going on here? How can you be so calm?" Ron asked his wife. Then realization hit him. "You knew!" she accused her. "You knew where she was last night."

Hermione returned to her daughter with two cups of coffee and turned to Ron who was still standing by the door holding it open.

"Darling, close the door. You're letting in the morning chill. Here have some coffee," Hermione said and placed one of the cups on the table near an empty chair on the other side of her. Ron obediently closed the door and sat next to his wife.

"Let's hear what Rose has to say," Hermoine smiled encouragingly to her daughter.

Rose told her dad an abridged version of what happened carefully avoiding his name. Finally, she finished.

"I wish you had told me and trusted me to react well," Ron said. "I know I have quite a bit of a temper but I do love you and want what's best for you and Drake."

"Drake? I didn't say his name, did I?" Rose asked confused.

"No. But a father knows. I've seen the looks that have passed between you two," Ron winked.

"Yuck! Dad! No. Not him. Never him. Lily would kill me," Rose realized her slip. "Oops!"

"Lily and Drake? Wow! But if not Drake who is it?"

"I want to remain calm, Ronald," Said Hermione looking at her husband.

"You said "Ronald"," Ron groaned. "I'm going to hate him, aren't I?"

Rose took a deep breath and let it out. " It's Scorpius."

Ron's face went from his usually pale complexion to a fine pink and finally became red like his hair, as his mind slowly comprehended the entire situation.

"SCORPIUS MALFOY! That boy is bad news. I told Harry to cut Albus's and his friendship short but no. He just refused to listen. 'He's a good kid, Ron. Don't worry, Ron.' " Ron said in a voice that was so unlike Harry's.

"I knew you would react like this. Give him a chance. He's important to me." Rosed begged.

"NO. NO. NO. Absolutely not. How could you do this? I thought you were smart," shouted Ron, standing up.

"Mom!" Rose whined.

"Hermione!" Ron said.

Hermione took a bit of her toast and calmly looked from side to side at the two red heads staring at her.

"Honey," Hermione said looking at her husband, "she's of age. You have no right to tell her whom she can see and not see." Hermione's look stopped Ron from voicing out his thoughts on the subject.

"And you," Hermione said looking at Rose, " should have told us what was happening between you and Scorpius. We're your parents and you've totally disrespected us by lying even if it was by omission."

"Now that we know," she continued, "I'd like to invite him for dinner along with his parents."

"OK, Mom. I'll ask them." Rose said.

Hermione walked out of the kitchen while Ron slid back into his chair.

"This is going to end very badly," Ron said to his daughter.

"I agree," Rose said.

"Toast?" Ron asked passing his daughter the plate of toast. " So, Lily and Drake. I'm going to love seeing the fireworks at Harry's place."

--

A few weeks later in Scorpius's room, Rose was sitting on the floor leaning against the bed painting her toenails. She was wearing Scorpius's "Go Slytherin" T-shirt. Scorpius was sitting on the sofa opposite her reading a letter that his parents just owled to him.

"Well, I told my parents to check their schedule and they sent a list of their available dates," Scorpius said handing a paper to Rose.

"And they couldn't owl my parents directly?" Rose asked while taking the paper.

"Because," Scorpius drawled, "we needed to check our dates and make sure they coincide."

"Oh," Rose said. "I'm sorry. I hate this. They are going to kill each other."

"Look at it this way. That would solve our problems," Scorpius smiled at Rose and stretched his arms out to her.

Rose went to him and sat on his lap. She ran her fingers through his hair while Scorpius was busying himself rubbing her thighs.

"Aren't you glad you didn't inherit your dad's hair," Rose asked.

"I'm blond," Scorpius said.

"But not platinum blond. You're a darker blond," Rose said. "So, how's Drake doing?"

"Better. I still can't mention Lily's name without him staring daggers at me."

"Lily is so upset. She did not want to breakup with him. She was angry about something else and took it out on him. Does he even read any of her owls?"

"Nope. He just burns them." Scorpius leaned towards Rose and pushing her hair back, he started kissing her neck.

"I wish he would listen to me. Every time I try, he walks away." Rose said.

Scorpius started to move his mouth lower. Rose got up. "Nope. I have to get ready and go to the botique."

"Fine," Scorpius answered. "I have to go meet my dad anyway."

Rose walked out of the bedroom after she got ready. Albus and Drake were eating breakfast.

"Waffles?" Albus asked.

"No thank you," Rose replied. Her dad was willing to overlook her "overnighter". After all in 5 months, she's be in healer training.

"So, Drake, Hear from Lily recently," Rose asked Drake.

"Not that it's any of your business but "NO". She has not owled me in three days."

"You're being tough on her. What do you think Albus?"

"I'm not involved. I refuse to take a side when it comes to my best friend and my sister."

"I'll be sure to mention that in my next owl to Lily," Rose told Albus. "And you," she said pointing to Drake, "read one of her owl, please?"

Drake gave her a drop-dead look. "Aren't you supposed to be at work?"

Rose left the two of them to their breakfast. Albus turned to Drake. "I know I told you that I'll butt out but," Drake rolled his eyes, "you need to straighten this out. She misses you."

"It's not just her. I have stuff going on," Drake said. "I have to go to work."

"You've been working a lot lately. Saving up for something?" Albus asked.

"Saving something is right."

"Huh?"

"Nothing," Drake said shaking his head.

Drake walked back to his room. He took his backpack and looked inside to make sure he had everything he needed.

"I'm off," Drake said to Albus.

Drake walked to the fireplace and used the floo system to go to Diagon Alley. He walked all the way down the street and with his head low, ducked into Knockturn Alley.

Knockturn Alley was a scary place where the scum of the wizarding community gathered. He held his wand tightly just in case he needed to use it. He walked into a bar called the Grudge Mug. There he saw the person he was to meet at a table in the corner. Drake walked over and placed an envelope from his backpack on the table.

"It's all there, I hope," the stranger said.

"All 500 galleons." Drake said impatiently.

"Maybe next time, we'll make it 750 galleons,"

"Oh come on. I'm working my fingers to the bone here plus going to auror training. Cut me some slack,"

"I'm not heartless. I'll give you 40 days instead of the usual 30 days."

"I can't!" Drake said tiredly.

"If you don't, your secret will be out. And I'm sure you won't want that,"

Drake signed and nodded his head dejectedly. "I'll be here in 40 days," he said.

The stranger looked at Drake's retreating back. Then, she picked up her bright green bag and walked out. Rita Skeeter was back!


	6. Chapter 6

Rose was late

Chapter 6

Drake hadn't had a decent night's sleep in more than 2 weeks and it was starting to show. He was drop dead tired, his eyes had dark circles around it and he looked like he lost 10 pounds. He walked into the apartment with his heavy backpack.

"Hey!" Scorpius said.

Scorpius and Albus were sitting on the sofa looking right at him. They looked concerned and slightly irritated.

"Hey! What are you guys doing up? It's almost midnight," Drake asked them.

"We were waiting to talk to you," Albus answered.

"Tomorrow. I'm going to bed. I'm exhausted." Drake said.

"That's what we wanted to talk to you about," Scorpius said.

"You have a scholarship for auror training but you're working 3 jobs. You're never home and you're always broke," Albus said.

"So we've narrowed it down to three possible conclusions- One, you're living a double life," Scorpius said with a smile.

"Or two, you're heavy into gambling and have a huge debt to pay," Albus added.

"And finally," Albus and Scorpius got up from the sofa and made trumpet sounds, "You're saving up to take your two best pals on vacation."

Drake gave a weary smile. "No, No and No," he said. "I'm going to bed and you keep dreaming up crazy thought."

"Hey, we're serious," Scorpius said. His entire demeanor changed. He became somber and walked over to Drake, placing his hand on Drake's shoulder, he said, "you'll let us know if you need anything, right?"

"Yeah," Albus said as he walked towards Drake. "Anything, anytime- let us know."

"There's nothing going on. I just need to work to keep my mind off Lily," Drake said. It was partly true but he knew Albus and Scorpius were never going to buy it.

"Come on. You don't have to deal with this on your own. Whatever it is," Albus stressed the point.

"IT'S NOTHING, STOP ASKING ME," Drake couldn't take it. In his overworked and exhausted state, his breaking point was near the surface.

Drake shoved Scorpius out of the way and made his way to his room. He threw his backpack on the floor and aimed his wand towards the door. He did not want them to come in. To probe and ask him things in his present state that he would regret tell them.

But Albus was training as an auror and knew what Drake was going to do. He walked into the room with his wand drawn. "Drake, put the wand down. We're just concerned. But if you tell us not the worry, then we'll trust you."

Drake dropped his wand and lets out a frustrated moan. He sat on his bed hard and flung himself back. "I'm tired. I need the money for someone, Ok? I'm not in trouble with the law or anything. If I need you, I'll let you know."

Albus turned around and started to walk out but Scorpius was blocking his path. Scorpius pushed Albus back into the room and stood in front of Drake.

"Are you sure? This is the last time that I ask you this," Scorpius said.

Drake got up into a sitting position. He let out a deep breath. "I want you to not judge me," he said pointing at Albus.

"Me? How about him?" Albus asked looking at Scorpius.

"He knows a little bit of what I'm about to say," said Drake.

"I'm just going to say this fast. It's going to be a big jumble of words so try to keep up," Drake took a deep breath and leaned over to take a bottle of water from the bedside. Pointing to two chairs by the window, he said, "Sit. This is going to be a long night."

Both the men sat down and looked expectantly at Drake. He looked nervous.

"Here goes…," Drake said.

Lily was in bed with the curtains around it drawn. She had put a silencing spell and was crying her eyes out. She was still upset about her breakup and even more upset after she received Rose's owl telling her that Drake had not opened even one of her owls.

Lily always thought Drake was cute. Albus had spoken about him as well as his other friends, Scorpius and Alex when he came home for the summer. The four of them were in Slytherin and were roommates. She didn't bother much because she was more nervous about going to Hogwarts after the summer ended. She was 16 months younger than Albus and got her Hogwarts letter exactly a year after he did. James was 3 years older than her. Their parents kept busy soon after their marriage!

The day her parents took the three of them to the platform 9 ¾, Lily was scared. It was the first time that she was leaving home. She said goodbye to her parents and boarded the train. Luckily, she had Hugo who was as nervous as she was. But it was at the end of the ride to Hogwarts that she met the boy who would steal her heart.

Lily had changed into her robes and was quite lost in the train. She stumbled into the wrong compartment when she saw her brother and his three friends along with Rose and her friend, Cathy.

Albus proudly introduced his little sister. Everyone smiled and received her warmly except Drake, who just sat there looking at her. Lily's heart did somersaults and she actually felt dizzy.

After that, every time they passed each other in the halls or corridors, he gave her a small smile or nod. But never spoke to her. Scorpius did mainly to pass a message on to Rose who was in the same house as her. Alex used to tease her but Drake never went beyond minimal contact.

But one day during her 5th year in the library while Lily was doing her potions homework, everything changed. Lily, a couple of her friends, Hugo, Rose, Scorpius and Albus were seated at a table. She was complaining about how she couldn't remember any of her potions. Drake sat next to her and told her all the tricks that Slytherins used to remember them.

Lily was grateful and asked him to help her the next day as well. Surprisingly, he agreed. They met the next day and the next and the day after that. He did not teach her beyond the second day. They just studied next to each other enjoying each other's company.

But at the end of the week, while Lily went in search for a book, Drake followed her. After she found it, he gently took the book from her and kissed her lips. The kiss was soft. He brushed her hair back and kissed her again, she pressed her lips a slight bit harder which opened the door to passionate kissing.

Drake suddenly stopped. He pushed her against the wooden bookcase and took her hands placing each one on either side of her head. His breathing was fast and he said, "Before this goes any further, we need to tell Albus."

Lily was in a daze. It took her a few seconds to concentrate on what he said. "Yes," she said, "we should." She didn't voice out what she thought. Tell him what? They kissed but what did that mean to him? Did he want to start dating?

Drake walked away from her and out the library. The next day, Albus answered all her questions. He sat next to her at the Ravenclaw table and told her that he was surprised but happy that Drake and her were dating. From then on, they were a couple.

Not that she had any complains. Lily loved being with Drake. He was kind, loving, trustworthy and honest. He knew just what to say to her to make her feel better. And best of all, he listened. Being the youngest of three siblings, she sometimes felt invisible. But he made her feel secure in herself.

Lily knew with all he heart that he was the "one" especially after he told her secrets of his past. It took him a year before he trusted her with such intimate details of his life. But she knew that he would never give details of his life to anyone easily. She was touched!

Lily was lost without him. He was her best friend and soul mate rolled into one. If only he read one of her owl, he would see how much she missed him. A small voice inside her told her that there was something more going on. But she hushed it.

For now, she was going to concentrate on her NEWTS and leave Hogwarts. Then, she was going to slap some sense into the guy. She got up, wiped her eyes and took out her books to study for the exams.

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"So I'm the grandson of a death eater," Drake said.

"So? A lot of the kids we go to school with have grandparents who were death eaters. In fact," Albus said pointing to Scorpius, "this one is one of them."

"Yeah. But mine was a lot worse than Lucius Malfoy."

"Who was it?" Albus's curiosity was spiked.

"Bellatrix Lestrange."

"Wow! I wasn't expecting that," Said Albus. "And you knew?" He asked Scorpius.

Scorpius nodded. "Known it all my life."

"It gets worse," Drake said.

Scorpius eyebrows knitted together in surprise. "I don't know what the next part is."

"I found out who my dad is." Drake said.

"Please, tell me it's a muggle. I'm sure everyone could sure a laugh," Scorpius said.

"Close enough. His dad was muggle and his mom was a pure-blood," said Drake. "And his name was Severus Snape."

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How was that? And to all of you who assumed that the death eater was a male, hahahaha.

Thanks for the reviews. I never knew how important they were till I started to write my own Fanfic.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Scorpius's head was filled with questions. He knew that Drake was his second cousin and all that but how did Snape enter the picture and how did Drake find out? But before he could ask Drake, Albus voiced him thought.

"I don't get it. Wasn't Bellatrix married to someone else?" Albus asked.

"Let me finish and it will fill in the gaps," Drake said. "Now, where was I? Oh yes, so Snape had to prove to the great 'Lord V' that he was over Lily. There were very few women in the same rank as Snape. Bellatrix was one of them and according to my mom's diary- and yes, Albus, I will come to the diary part and my mom part soon- was willing to breed pure bloods but when she found out that Snape's dad was a muggle, she gave my mom to an orphanage in Latvia. She was adopted and moved to Finland"

Drake continued after noting the intent looks on his listeners face, "My mom knew nothing of her past but she went to Durmstrang since Finland is close to it. But she was curious about her parents and after the first wizard war in England, all magical beings especially death eaters had to be screened. Well, she found out who her mother was. She obviously was distressed at finding out who her mother was and never bothered about finding out her father since she was sure he would have been a death eater too."

Drake stopped to take a drink of water. Both his friends knew that his mom and dad decided to move back to England just after Drake was born. They also knew that his dad was a muggle and his mom decided to live a muggle lifestyle as well.

"So, what else? I decided to find out who my grandfather was. Sent my blood in and did just that. Found out 8 months ago. Told my parents and they really did not care. But I knew if your dad," pointing to Albus, "found out, I'll pretty much be non accessible to Lily."

"But you broke up with her so why does it matter? Is that why you let the breakup happen? And this still doesn't explain why you're working so much." Scorpius said.

"Well, someone found out and I'm being blackmailed."

"Who's doing that?"

"Some ex-reporter called Rita Skeeter."

Albus and Scorpius gave each other a quick glance that Drake missed.

"So, what do I do?" Asked Drake. " I don't want the whole wizarding world to know about my ancestors sordid past."

"First, who cares? You're keeping this big secret but seriously I don't care who your parents or grandparents are. I'm sure no one else cares about something that happened more than 25 years ago," Albus said. "Second, is this why you broke up with my sister?"

Albus got up angrily. "You broke her heart- over this?"

"You have no idea how difficult it will be for her and me after this comes out. I've seen it."

"Seen what?" Albus asked.

"Seen the way they treat Scorpius," Drake said quietly. "They always whisper behind his back and say the worst things. Scorpius has to act like he can't hear them."

"Stop! I do care about what people say. It hurts me that I have to pay for my father and grandfather's mistakes but there's more to life than worrying about unimportant people. The people who really matter are the ones who don't care about all this and still chooses to be around me. I have Rose," Scorpius said.

"But you were and are still are scared that her parents will never accept you. They might make her choose and then what will happen? She'll choose her parents. Lily will choose her parents."

"Lily? You said Lily," Scorpius said.

"I..I meant Rose," Drake stammered.

"We can't change the past but you need to forget about all this. If this gets out, we'll deal," Albus said. "And Lily would have chosen you. It would have been you, I'm sure." He walked over to Drake and placed a hand on his shoulder, squeezed it before leaving the room.

Drake nodded unsure about Albus's opinion. Scorpius was looking out the window, deep in thought.

"We'll talk in the morning some more," Scorpius said suddenly and walked out.

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Drake woke up from a deep and refreshing sleep. It took him a while to realize where he was. The weird working hours combined with the lack of sleep and stress was making him feel disoriented.

The clock read 8:30 am. Luckily, Drake did not have work or classes today. He was about to laze in bed some more but the smell of fresh coffee was enticing. He rolled out of bed, pulled on his robe and walked out.

"Albus? Scorp?" Drake shouted out.

No one seemed to be there. Drake went over to where the coffee maker was. A small yellow sticky note was stuck on the machine.

It read, "Went out. Drink the coffee. Eggs, Bacon and toast in oven. Meet you for lunch at "The Earl of Sandwich" at Diagon Alley. 1:00 pm."

Drake read the note and threw it in the trash. He opened the oven and took out the plate of breakfast. He placed a warming charm on the plate and sat down at the table with the morning paper.

There was a huge weight lifted of Drake's shoulders. He was ready to tell Rita Skeeter to go to Hell. He was rehearsing different scenarios in his head. Then, his eyes fell on a stack on owls that were in a basket. Another note was on it:

This one read, "Lily's owls." In Scorpius's handwriting

Drake started to read them. This was going to be a long morning.

Ron was staring out the window at a blond boy standing outside his house. The kid had been pacing and walking up and down for the past 20 minutes. Generally, Ron would have either jinxed him or hexed him. But he knew his wife would kill him for hurting their daughter's boyfriend.

"Is he still there?" Asked Hermione.

"Still pacing. Can I please just put a rock in his path? It would just make my day to see him fall. Did I say "day"? I meant week," said Ron to his wife.

"I'm going to ask him to come in and if he does something I don't like, you can jinx him," said Hermione.

Ron looked towards heaven begging God to make his week. He saw his wife walking down their front steps towards Scorpius. He saw them both talking and Scorpius glancing at his watch.

The two of them headed back up the stairs into the house. Scorpius looked uncomfortable and Ron was enjoying watching his squirm.

Hermione introduced Scorpius to Ron and then turned to him. "So, what brings you here? You do know that Rose is at work."

"I know. Albus was supposed to meet me here. He's late and we wanted to ask your professional advice. You know lawyer stuff." Scorpius sounded nervous.

"In trouble with the law, are we?" Ron could hardly contain his glee.

Hermione gave Ron an angry look. She turned to Sccorpius and said, "Sit down, Scorpius. I'm sure Albus will be here any minute and Ron- Get our guest a drink."

Ron walked out to follow his wife's instructions while Hermione was studying her visitor. Scorpius was definitely his father's child, a handsomer version though. His hair was a darker blond but he had the same nose and the color of his eyes was the same shade of grey as his father. He was taller and broader than Hermione had expected.

The doorbell rang and Albus walked in. "Hello. It's me! Albus!"

"In here," Hermione said loudly to her nephew.

"Aunt Hermoine," Albus said as he walked over and kissed his aunt on both cheeks. He looked over at Scorpius as he sat down next to Hermione, "Sorry I took long."

"So, what's going on?" Hermione asked them.

"We need to get your professional opinion for a friend. But I think we need a little privacy." Albus said.

"Sure. We can go to my office," Hermione said. Just then Ron walked in with drinks for his guests. Albus and his uncle made small talk about work and Hogwarts before Ron announced that he had to get ready for a muggle game called golf.

After Ron left the room, Hermione rose to lead the way to her office. She was gracious in her manner and it seemed like every movement she made was calculated and precise. Her hair was usually tied up into a French loop. Her makeup was minimal yet enhanced her beautiful features.

The office was behind a bookshelf that opened as they neared it. The office was cozy. It had loads of books arranged neatly in bookshelves made of dark wood. The floor was covered in plush dark blue carpets and lambskin rugs.

Hermione indicated a comfortable beige sofa for them to sit on while she sat opposite them in another sofa of the same kind.

"So what kind of trouble are you boys in?" Hermione asked cutting to the chase.

"Not us!" Scorpius was quick to defend himself to the mother of his girlfriend.

Albus rolled his eyes and narrated the whole story to his aunt without mentioning any names except those of Rita Skeeter. He was hoping that his aunt's dislike of her would help them.

Hermione Granger-Weasley listened intently to the entire story, without any interruptions. After which, she stood up and said, " this is not a matter I would take too seriously. Tell your friend to stop being giving in to Rita," she spat out the name without holding back her distain, "she'll print it. Your friend will take a little heat for a few days. The matter will blow over and life will be back to normal." Hermione said matter-of-factly.

Hermione rose to indicate that the meeting was over but Albus quickly said, "We know and that's what we told him but this death eater did a lot of horrible things. After Scorpius and I did a lot of research, we realized it's not a small matter."

"Unless this death eater was as hated as Dolohov I don't foresee a problem and as far as I know only one of the top 10 death eaters had children," Hermione said, as she looked intently at Scorpius whose skin became flushed. "And," she continued, "he wasn't as bad at the other nine, who were evil and I do use that term mildly." Lucius Malfoy and Draco Malfoy had redeemed themselves by helping out Harry at the end but socially, they were still at odds with other wizards who were glad to do business with them but refused to sit at the same table at meal time.

Scorpius rose and stood directly in front of Hermione. " "As far as you know" being the operative phrase in that sentence."

"Do you mean to tell me that this is the grandchild of one of the worst death eaters that the wizarding world has ever seen, had the time to actually have a child and keep it a secret?" Hermione said in disbelief.

"It's true. We double checked," Albus said, " Everything fits. We checked this person's whereabouts. The child being taken via floo by Voldermont's henchman, Peter Pettigrew from St. Mungo's to Latvia. The child's adoption. Everything is in this file as well as all the blood work to prove it." Albus took the file from his jacket and showed it to her.

Hermione reached for the file but Albus pulled it away from her. "I can't show it to you unless you promise to keep this between us and try to help our friend out."

Scorpius seemed uncomfortable and sat back down next to Albus as Hermione started to pace the room. After a while, she looked up. "Fine. I'll be discreet but Ron will have to be told I refuse to hide this from him."

"No. Mr. Weasley will tell Mr. Potter and we would like to avoid that," Scorpius said adamantly.

"I'm guessing the Carrows, Dolohov are out. Since I think my hatred of them is more than that of Harry's," Hermione said.

"I understand if you say "No", we can contact someone else." Scorpius said as he started to get up.

"No. I'll do it and won't tell Ron- for now. But I will let you know when I decide to tell him," Hermione said as she took the file from Albus. She walked over to her desk and sat on a chair. She opened the file and started to read. Her face was a blank. Albus and Scorpius got up and started to look around the room. It was plastered with various newspaper clippings around the time that Lord Voldemort was finally defeated.

Hermione finally lifted her head and cleared his throat to show that she was done. Albus and Scorpius walked over and stood in front of her desk.

"This is a shock. I never knew that Bellatrix had a child. There was no indication of any humanness in her." Hermione got up and pulled a book from a shelf behind her. "I'll deal with that reporter. Tell Drake that this won't come out in public but eventually I will tell Ron and Harry."

Albus nodded. "We understand," he said

Scorpius smiled and said, " Thank you. We appreciate it."

The two boys quickly left the office and into the living room and out the door. They, fortunately, did not run into Ron. They went to Diagon Alley to meet up with Drake and tell him everything. He won't be pleased to find out what they had done but they had no choice in the matter. It was either this or continuing to see Drake being blackmailed.

Thanks for the reviews. I hope you all are enjoying the story. Sorry, I took so long to update!


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Lunch turned out to be a disaster. Drake was angry and disappointed that Scorpius and Albus went running to Hermione. He walked out almost as soon as they told him. Albus counted himself lucky that they were in a public place or he would have been sporting a black eye for sure.

Scorpius packed up for the next couple of days and left the apartment. He was going to stay with his parents while Drake cooled down.

Draco and Astoria Malfoy were waiting for their first-born child. Unlike the other Malfoy's, Astoria wanted more than one child. Sage was their second kid and she had refused to go to Hogwarts. Instead, she went to Beauxbatons Academy of Magic that was an all-girls school and was more artsy than any other wizarding schools.

Abigail and Alex were both in Hogwarts doing their 5th and 7th year respectively. Abigail was a Slytherin through and through. She had brownish-blond hair and her eyes were the lightest blue like her mother's. Alex was the Quidditch king of Hufflepuff and looked like his grandmother. He had platinum blond hair and gray eyes. Very few people knew that Alex and Lily Potter were good friends especially after Drake had left the school.

"Mom! Dad!" Scorpius said as he entered the grand hall. He went over and gave his mom a peck on her cheek and his father got up to clap his son's back and give him a half-hug.

"Drink?" Draco asked his son.

Scorpius sat down and slumped into his seat. "I'm good."

Draco handed his wife a martini and poured a whiskey for himself. "Situation at home still bad," he asked.

"Not sure. Did not stick around to find out," Scorpius said. Scorpius's parents obviously knew about Drake being part of the family and he had filled them on the details of who was blackmailing Drake. But Snape's involvement was something that Scorpius felt that they were not quite ready for.

Draco admired Snape and loved him for saving his soul but he did feel that Snape betrayed him on a deeper level. He could have prevented him from going to the dark side but did not do so to fulfill a greater purpose just like Dumbledore did to Harry.

"Dinner is served," A maid announced.

"What are we having?" Scorpius loved the food served at his parent's house. It was usually creamy, buttery and high calorie items that Scorpius would have to run off in the morning but for now his mouth started to water at the thought of the feast that awaited him.

The meal consisted of 4 courses. Opening with an Italian salad and Bruschetta, followed by wonderful meat lasagna and garlic bread and finally, ended with Tiramisu for dessert.

Scorpius was almost tempted to unbutton his pants and dig in some more but the "Malfoy" in him prevented him from losing sight of his manners.

"How was it, darling?" Astoria asked. She was a regal woman who showered her children with praises and affection. She had learnt early on that the Malfoy family was not affectionate towards anybody especially their own family. They were distant and stuckup. But Astoria put a stop to all that early on in her marriage.

It was due to his wife that Draco was a changed man. She was supportive and always spoke highly of him. She forgave him past and helped him pay his debt to society. She showed him love and affection that he was deprived of as a child. Draco returned her love by being a responsible husband and father. He was an epitome of a perfect husband and his troubled past was not even an issue between them.

"It was so good," Scorpius said. "Mom, please teach Rose to cook. She tries but she's awful at it."

"And lose the one thing that keeps bringing my son back home? I think not," Astoria said.

Scorpius laughed. "Well, if you like Rose then we can move in here. That way I get the best of both worlds."

"That's not going to happen. I'm enjoying my days with your mom and no kids pestering us," Draco said.

"Although, I won't mind grand kids. I'm young enough to take care of them and smart enough to send them back when they get cranky," Astoria said.

"That will be a while. I'm still not sure Rose and I are in that place yet and we still have that dinner to get through in three days ," Scorpius stated.

"If I know Ron- and I do know him a little. His bark is worse than his bite," Draco said. "I'm happy that you're not dating Lily cause her mother can do a Bat Bogey Hex that will sting for weeks."

"You're poor father was on the receiving end of that curse. Not that he did not deserve it but still, I remember his poor little face was sore for weeks," Astoria said.

"That would have been a sight," Scorpius said with a gleam in his eyes. "I wish I could have been there."

The mood quickly changed from relaxed to tense. Astoria and Draco had to endure the wrath of their so-called friends and almost everyone in the society. The temptation to move to another country and start anew was Astoria's idea but Draco refused to leave his home. Everything he knew was in England and he felt that once enough time had passed, people would forget what he had done. He often thought how wrong he was in thinking that more so after his children grew up and had to defend what their father and family had done.

"I'm glad you weren't born in those times. Those were dark days. I pray none of my children have to go through what we all had to," Astoria said seriously. "You never knew who was on whose side. We all did what we had to do to survive." Her eyes glazed over as she started thinking of the past.

"Ahem," Draco cleared his throat. "Let's think about something else, shall we?"

The rest of the evening was pleasant enough. When it was close to midnight, Scorpius and his parents resigned to their respective bedchambers.

Scorpius's chamber was located at the Far East end of the house. It overlooked the quiet countryside where his siblings and himself would spend hours riding their horses.

Scorpius quickly took a shower and changed into his nightclothes. He sent an owl to Rose and lay down on his bed. The tension of the day caught up with him and he fell into a deep slumber.

* * *

Scorpius always tried to be at work early so that he could work uninterrupted for a few hours before meetings and conference calls got in his way.

There was a fireplace in his room so he flooed from there to the office. Surprisngly, Rose was waiting for him. She was sitting behind his desk with her bare feet on his table and a laptop balancing on her lap.

"Hey you!" Scorpius said walking over to his girlfriend.

Rose placed her laptop on the desk and got up to give Scorpius a kiss. "This is how ever morning should start," Rose said.

"It will once you agree to move in with me," Scorpius said.

"It's a couple of more months and when we're in school, we can move in together. I promise," Rose said. "I actually came by to see how the whole Drake situation was."

"Not to see me? I'm hurt," Scorpius said feigning a disappointed face.

Rose smiled and pulled Scorpius to the sofa. Once seated, Rose promptly removed her shoes and put them in Scorpius's lap for a massage.

"It wasn't too bad but he was angry. Albus and I could tell he was controlling his temper since we were in a public place. I'm hoping he will cool down after a few days and see we did the right thing." Scorpius was staring into space, his face sad but his hands still massaging absentmindedly Rose's feet.

Rose waited a few minutes and then pulled her feet back and gathered herself into a kneeling position. She placed one hand on Scorpius's shoulder and the other she placed on his cheek. With that hand, she gently moved his face to face hers.

"You did what you thought was best," Rose said gently.

"I hope your mom can help. I would hate this to be all over the news," Scorpius spoke with concern.

"My mom can take care of everything but I would worry more of how Uncle Harry will handle it."

"Your mom said she won't tell anyone for now."

"Let's hope so." Rose said less convinced than Scorpius. "Let's talk about something else. What time should I be at your place on Friday?"

Scorpius looked at Rose questioningly. "Saturday? Why do you need to pick me up? My parents and I will meet you at your parents house."

"I think we should go together. You know present a united front. My parents will expect us at 6:00pm sharp." Rose said firmly.

"Ok," Scorpius said. "Be at my place at say, 5:45pm."

* * *

Drake was angry with Albus and Scorpius but now after more than 24 hours had passed; he felt that they had no choice. They were just trying to help him out. He wasn't completely angry with them when he met them for lunch the previous day. He was angry with himself for breaking up with Lily. After reading all her owls, full of apologies and sincere expressions of love, he knew he made a mistake.

Drake had just sent an owl explaining everything in an owl that would burn itself soon after she read it so that no one else would know what he written. He was impatiently waiting for a reply and stared out at the window waiting for his owl to return.

Just after noon, he glanced for the umpteenth time and saw the owl with a paper in its claws.

* * *

Sorry it took me so long to update. I hope to get the next chapter out this weekend.

Thanks for your reviews.


	9. Chapter 9

Scorpius reached home at 5:00pm and took a shower. He had a hard day mainly because he couldn't concentrate on his work. He was dreading meeting Rose's father. He heard about his terrible temper from Albus and Drake since they were his students at Auror training. Rose always downplayed her father's mood and blamed it on either the students or their way of exaggerating.

Scorpius walked out of the bathroom in his robe and was toweling his hair. He was greeted by Rose's voice,

"I'm here so don't jinx me," Rose said. She was lying in his bed. "I'm so tired. I'm going to sleep for 5 minutes. Wake me up."

Scorpius laid down next to Rose and asked, "Hard day?"

"I hate people. I'm serious," she said as she saw Scorpius smile. "They are rude and crude and everything else nasty."

"Why?" What happened?"

"We had about 20 people come to the store today who made us run around and search for things and complain about the color and how the size was wrong. The size isn't wrong? You've gained weight! But could I say it? No! Why? Because the customer is always right. I had to smile at them till my cheeks started to pain. And finally, they did not buy a thing? After 3 long hours- nothing! Nada! Zilch!" Rose fumed.

Scorpius hugged Rose tightly and kissed the top of her head. Rose snuggled closer.

"But looking at the bright side, I gave my 2 weeks notice today," Rose said, her voice a slight bit more cheery than before. "I can't believe it! 6 weeks and I'll be in Healer school. I'm so excited."

Scorpius's face scrunched up. He had to tell Rose that he had changed his mind and was not going to Auror training. He wasn't sure how she would take it.

"Let me nap for three minutes," Rose said.

"Sure," Scorpius said, his mind on when and how he would tell Rose about his decision. But before he knew it, he fell asleep. A deep sleep just like his girlfriend next to him.

Astoria and Draco apparated in front of Ron and Hermione's house. They were a little nervous about meeting Ron. They had bumped into him at Ministry parties and other formal occasions but he always made cocky remarks. Draco never said anything back to Ron but it bothered Astoria to no end.

Hermione, on the other hand, was quite nice. She was polite and always remembered the Malfoy children's names. She had an important position in the law enforcement department at the ministry but never had any airs about herself. That Ginny Weasley on the other hand….

The door opened and Hermione Weasley opened the door with a big smile.

"Come in, come in," Hermione said warmly. As the Malfoys entered, she hugged them both and ushered them into their living room.

"Beautiful house, Mrs Weasley," Astoria said with true admiration.

"Thank you and please, call me Hermione."

"And you can call me Astoria"

Hermione made sure her guests were seated and comfortable. Then she excused herself to drag her reluctant husband to the living room.

"But I don't want to welcome them," Ron wined. He sounded more like a 5 year old than a grown man.

"I'm going to count till 5 and if you don't get your ass into the living room and be polite to your guests, I will hex you so you can't sit for a week," Hermione threatened.

"Fine. I'll go and be polite but I won't like it," Ron stomped down the stairs. Hermione followed her husband into the living room.

"And you know, my husband- Ron," said Hermione.

A few mumbled "Hellos" and everyone seated themselves again. Hermione and Astoria made small talk mainly about Hogwarts and the kids, while Ron was staring angrily at Drake.

"Excuse me, let me get the appetizers," said Hermione

"I can help," Ron said quickly.

"No. That's OK. You keep our guests entertained," Hermione said firmly.

"I'll help," Astoria said and got up but Draco was holding on to her hand for dear life. She turned around and mumbled for him to let go, which he did reluctantly.

The women left the room leaving their husbands behind. Draco cleared his throat and looked around the room for the hundredth time.

"So, your daughter and my son?" Draco said bravely.

"Yeah," Ron grumbled.

"I was so shocked, weren't you?" Draco asked hoping Ron wouldn't lung across the cocktail table and kill him.

"Yeah."

"I can't believe they kept it a secret for so long," Draco continued.

"Yeah."

Draco gave up and slouched in his seat. After a few minutes, he decided to try one last attempt at a conversation.

"How did you find out?"

"Rose didn't come home one night. She told us, the next morning," Ron said bluntly.

"Oh. Well, I would have had a heart attack if that's the way I found out," Draco said.

"I'm sure walking on them kissing wasn't exactly fun," Ron said.

"That's not how I found out," Draco said.

Ron sat up in his chair. "But Rose told us that you walked in on them kissing."

""Oh ya! You're right. We did." Draco lied.

"You're lying!" Ron, his eyes narrowed.

"Me and my big mouth. Don't tell the kids, as far as they know that's how we found out but actually we read Scorpius's diary," Draco whispered the last few words.

"You did?" Ron's eyes were full of excitement.

"They were teenagers and my kids don't tell me anything. So occasionally- very occasionally, I read their diaries. You know- just to know what's happening," Draco said, defending his actions.

Ron laughed out loud. "I thought I was the worst parent for not knowing what my daughter was up to. But you beat me."

"I did nothing wrong and as long as they don't know what I did, I avoid getting into trouble and I'm still in the loop. They just don't know I'm in the loop," Draco said.

That was the icebreaker. Draco and Ron's conversation was easy flowing after that. Hermione and Astoria walked into the room half expecting them to be at each other's throat. Instead, they were laughing and joking around.

The 4 adults moved from the living room into the kitchen where they had dinner. Draco refused the formal dining room and fancy napkins. They sat around the kitchen island discussing their children's supposedly "secret" exploits.

"Darling, did you tell Ron about the time you planted a bug in Sage's room?" Astoria asked her husband.

"A bug? Priceless, why didn't I think of that?" Ron asked himself loudly.

"The bug was temporary. I thought Sage was going to get those muggle ink things on a skin. Those ridiculous taboos," Said Draco.

"Tattoos," Hermione corrected.

"Whatever," Draco said. "They are just so weird. Anyway, she didn't get one and I took out the bug."

"You act as if you removed it willingly," Astoria said exasperated. "I had to threaten to tell Sage otherwise he would have bugged all our kids rooms indefinitely."

"Well, kids cannot be trusted," Draco said.

"Hear, hear!" Ron said.

Draco and Ron clicked their glasses together and gulped the firewiskey in one go. They were halfway through dinner when the door of the kitchen opened suddenly with a loud thump as it hit the wall.

"I'm so sorry. We overslept. We were tired and slept and …" Rose blabbered.

Rose looked like she had dressed up in a hurry. Her hair was in a mess and her clothes seemed like she just threw them on. Scorpius was right behind her and was in the same state.

"Scorpius, You're 2 hours late. You can't keep people waiting for you," Astoria admonished her son.

"I'm sorry," Scorpius said to his mother and then turned to Hermione Weasley. "I apologize. I'm never this tardy."

"Oh son. Sit down and join us, we were just talking about you," Draco said casually pouring his son a much needed firewiskey.

Ron chuckled at Draco and pulled a seat next to him so that Scorpius could sit. Rose and Scorpius seemed taken aback by their parents' behavior. They looked like they were actually getting along.

The rest of the evening passed with the men talking about golf and the women about the latest gossip of the wizarding world. At one point, the subject of Drake came up. Astoria and Draco assumed that Hermione had told Ron about Drake's grandmother.

"Well, how did you react when you found out about Drake's grandmother?" Draco asked Ron.

Ron looked puzzled. "I'm not sure I know who she is," Ron said.

Hermione quickly interrupted them. "We have yet to discuss this but for now I'm trying to get Drake out of his current predicament."

Ron pouted and gave his wife a sad look. "Everyone at the table knows. Please tell me. I won't tell anyone else."

Hermione thought for a second and looked at Scorpius for a sign. After Scorpius nodded to indicate his approval, Hermione looked at Ron.

"Well, I don't think it's too juicy as you imagined." Hermione tried to downplay the situation. Drake's grandmother is Bellatrix Lestrange."

Ron chocked on the water he was drinking. "What? She had kids. Does Harry know?"

"No. I'm sure he'll be upset but knowing that his grandfather was Snape, should make him feel better,"

"What?" Three adults voices chorused.

Hemione looked at Astoria and Draco. "You didn't know?"

"About Snape! No. Scorpius? Why didn't you tell us?" Astoria looked at her son.

Scorpius sat with his head hanging. He slowly raised it and looked at Hermione. "Nope. I was waiting for the right moment to tell them," he said.

"I'm so sorry," Hermione said. "I thought they knew."

Ron looked dazed and Rose was sure he was going to pass out.

"Dad?" Rose asked as she came over to him. "Are you OK?"

"I'm fine. In a bit of a shock," Ron told Rose.

"I don't have to tell you all the importance of keeping this matter quiet, for Drake's sake." Hermione said looking at everyone in the room.

"Of, course."

"Yes."

"Ron?" Hermione asked.

"I won't tell anyone. Not even Harry. But he has to know at some point because of Drake and Lily," Ron told Hermione.

"I don't think that will be an issue. They broke up," Rose said.

"I think Drake is trying to patch things up now that he feels Rita Skeeter is being taken care of by Mrs Weasley," Scorpius said.

"Oh? When did you talk to him?" Astoria asked. "I thought he was angry with you."

"He was but he owled me this morning and told me that he understands what Albus and I did was for him and he feel just by telling us, the weight has been lifted off his shoulders. I think he was also imagining the worst-case scenario and needed a little reassurance that people will stand by him if this comes out," Scorpius said.

"This is far from over. I did have to twist Katie Flint's arm into giving me some scoop about Rita that was bad enough for her to leave England. She's gone for now but I never found out how she found out the information. She cannot turn into an animagus anymore without the ministry's knowledge so I'm sure someone told her and that's what irks me. Who else knows? Drake has to be prepared that this could, and I'm pretty sure it will, come out in the future." Hermione said to Scorpius.

"I'll let him know. He'll be glad to know that Rita is no more in England. Thank you, Mrs. Weasley. Albus did the right thing by suggesting that we come to you," Scorpius stated.

"I hate to break up the party but it's almost midnight," Astoria said.

Everyone was surprised at how fast time had gone by. Everyone got up from their seats to say their goodbyes.

"I have to be at the club at 9:00 am sharp. I have a tee time reserved," Draco told Ron.

"Really? I never play at the club. Snotty brats," Ron said.

"True but I play alone. Nobody likes to mingle with me after business hours. Bad for their reputation."

"You know my reputation is squeaky clean. I need to have a dark spot on it just to liven things up. I can join you tomorrow," Ron invited himself to Draco's tee time.

That surprised and pleased both the wives. Rose leaned over and whispered to her mom, "Mom, someone has placed dad on a cruciatus curse."

After all the Malfoy's left, Rose helped her parents clean up the kitchen. Not that it was hard. The three of them sat down and drew their wands placing several cleaning charms.

"I like Scorpius. He seems like a good kid," Ron said quite suddenly.

"No. You like Draco," Hermione teased.

"I actually do. He's changed a lot since our Hogwart days."

"Well, the last time you spoke to him was when he was 18. He was a kid. He's bound to change a little," Rose said practically. She was happy that Scorpius got her parents stamp of approval.

"I'm off to bed," Rose said and kissed her parents.

"It's true. In 25 years, everyone is bound to change," Ron said sadly.

Hermione knew what he was talking about. She reached over and touched Ron's hand. Ron and Harry were best friends and always will be. But Ginny had changed considerably which had put a strain on their friendship. Hermione rarely spoke to Ginny and if she did, it was usually for birthdays, anniversaries or other such formalities.

Ginny had grown from a pretty girl to a beautiful woman with gorgeous red hair and creamy white skin. Add that with being married to the most famous wizard of all time plus being an ex-Harpies Quidditch player really made Ginny feel like she was perfect. It did not help that she was the only girl in the original Weasley gang of seven and was pampered as a child.

Harry had thrown all his energy into the Ministry and his children. One could see his sadness on losing his wife to the world of glamour and excitement but he still loved his wife.

"Let's go to bed," Ron said. "When does the train come in tomorrow?"

"3:00PM. Why don't you meet us at the station after the golf game?"

"Good idea."

Hermione and Ron walked up the stairs to their room and making plans for the weekend.

Drake sat looking at the Owl Lily sent a few days ago. It read:

"Don't ever talk to me again."

Drake wasn't going to give up without trying. He knew Lily was angry with him and had every right to be but he was going to make sure that she understood his reasons and forgave him. He was planning on going to the station tomorrow to receive Lily. He was hopeful that she would at least talk to him.


	10. Chapter 10

Drake stood behind a pillar at the train station, platform 9 ¾. He saw Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley standing a little away from him. But they couldn't see him.

Just before the train arrived, he spotted Mr. Malfoy approach Mr. Weasley. They started to talk amicably which astonished Drake. He thought they could not stand each other. He made a mental note to ask Scorpius or Rose about the matter.

Just then the train approached the station and slowed to a complete stop. All the students rushed out especially the first years that were eager to disembark and tell their parents about the school year. The final years were always the last to leave the train. They tried to cling to the last few minutes of their Hogwarts experience before the real world engulfed them.

Then, from the second to last compartment, Lily stepped out. She was even more breathtaking than he remembered. Her hair was short. He vaguely remembered her telling him that she was going to get a "bob cut" last year. She was wearing black Capri pants and a light blue T-shirt. She was holding her caged owl in one hand and someone was helping her with her trunk. He felt a prick of jealousy in his chest. When the boy turned around, Drake noticed that it was Alex, Scorpius's brother.

Lily tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and Drake's breath got stuck in his chest. He wanted to walk up to her and tell her how sorry he was. But she, along with Hugo and Alex went to where their fathers were standing.

Drake walked away. It wasn't the right time to talk to her and he knew it even before he reached the station. But he had to see his Lily.

* * *

Lily knew that Drake was there. She could feel him watching her but she did not turn in his direction. He had hurt her by lying to her and then making her think that their breakup was her fault. She spent agonizing months just crying and owling him day after day with no response. He never had the courteous to respond.

Finally, after 6 whole months, Drake owled her with all the details of what happened. He didn't trust her and that was what hurt the most. She would never have judged him for the mistakes of his grandparents and so what if the reporters were all over them. She could handle that as well. The parent part might have become tricky but her father would have eventually come around. And even if he didn't, she would have still been with Drake. She loved him. But she never told him that and _**that**_ was her biggest mistake in the entire relationship.

Lily had felt so lost in her final year at Hogwarts. The last two years were only about Drake and when he left school, she did not know what to do with herself. Luckily, Alex was there to help her out of that. She would forever be grateful to him for helping her this last year especially the last 6 months.

Her father's voice snapped her out of her trance. "Your brothers and mother are waiting for you with a feast. If we don't hurry up, James will start without us," Harry told his daughter. Lily smiled at her dad and walked faster. Her mother made a mean pot roast.

The Potters, Malfoys and Weasleys all started to go their own way when Mr. Malfoy said something shocking.

"Potter, why don't you and your family join us for dinner next week. We are having this horrid party for all the people doing business with us and I would like to have a few sane people around," Draco Malfoy said. "The Weasleys will be there as well. Think about it. Would love to have your family there. I'll owl you with the details"

Lily was slightly taken aback but Alex leaned over and said, "It will be fun."

"I'll have to ask Ginny but I will owl you as soon as we decide," Harry told Draco.

Lily and her father got into their car and drove off. Lily couldn't wait to go home and forget about Hogwarts and Drake. For today, she wanted to be spoiled by her parents, teased by her brothers and be free of worry. Little did she know how different the hours ahead would unfold.

* * *

Lunch was perfection. The pot roast was wonderful and her father had made her favorite dessert- chocolate pudding. Albus and James were stuffing themselves as well. Lily observed her family. James was the joker and Albus was the serious one. But this evening, he was distracted.

Her mother, Ginny Weasley never had a single hair out of place and looked flawless. But that was Ginny on the outside. On the inside, she was going through some things. Lily wasn't sure what it was. Her parents went to counseling to mend their broken relationship. She knew they loved each other but, as her mother said, love and air is not enough to stay in a relationship.

"Lily, you look like you've lost weight. Studying a bit too much, have we?" Ginny asked her only daughter.

"Don't even mention studying. I hope I did well enough in my NEWTS," Lily said.

"You'll do well," Albus said. He looked at her a little sympathetically. He knew how much she had been though this year and hoped that she could handle the tough evening ahead. He had decided to tell his parents about Drake. Not of his own will but because of a mysterious owl that he received.

Albus pushed his chair back and looked at his father. "Dad, do you have the time to talk now?"

"Sure, Albus."

"Mom?" Albus asked his mother.

"Why don't the two of you go into my study while I clean up? I'll be there in a minute."

Ginny said.

"That's Ok, mom. I can do it," Lily said.

Lily got up to get her wand while Ginny, Harry and Albus went to the office room. Once in there, Albus placed the Muffliato spell on the door.

"What is it, darling? All this secrecy is scaring me," Ginny said.

"There have been some interesting things happening lately," Albus told.

Albus looked at his parents and told them everything about Drake, his heritage and the blackmailer. He saw his parents go from their usual calm self to shock to anger and finally calm again.

"Why did you tell us? We never would have found out if you hadn't," Harry asked Albus.

Albus got up and shouted for Lily. Once she walked in, puzzled, he closed the door again. Then he handed his parents the Daily Prophet with the date of the NEXT day.

"HARRY POTTER'S DAUGHTER DATING THE GRANDSON OF HATED DEATH EATER." The headline boldly announced.

"How did you get this?" Harry asked his hands shaking with anger. Ginny touched her husband's hand to calm him down.

"Anonymous owl," Albus said.

"Is this true?" Harry turned to Lily.

Lily looked shocked. Her face lost all color and she fainted.

* * *

Lily was lying down in her room, crying. Her father was so angry with her and had walked out of the house. She was lying face down on her bed holding her pillow close to it so that no one could hear her crying.

The doorbell rang. But Lily did not care who it was. She heard a few voices and footsteps up the stairs to her bedroom and then a soft knock.

"Go away!" Lily said not caring who it was.

"It's me- Rose," The voice behind the door said.

Lily sat up and before she could say anything, Rose walked in slowly with a worried expression. She walked up to Lily and hugged her.

Lily continued to sob and Rose gently stroked her hair knowing that she couldn't say anything to console her cousin.

Finally, Lily raised her head. "How did you know?" She asked.

"Your dad is at my place talking to my parents. Hugo overheard everything and owled me at work," Rose explained.

"He hates me," Lily said sadly.

"No he doesn't. He just needs to calm down. My mom will see to that and he doesn't understand how Bellatrix and Snape's secret was, well, kept a secret from him."

"I wanted to tell him but I thought, "Why should we?" I could have kept this matter hidden forever. My father never needed to know and I was in love. Maybe even foolishly so," Lily said.

"Now that it's all out in open, what are you going to do? Are you and Drake going to be together if your father becomes alright with it?" Rose asked.

"I don't now. I was so hurt and I wanted to make him suffer for a while before I even considered taking him back. But now, I feel like I have to decide quickly," Lily laughed suddenly. "I can't believe I'm more disappointed about not punishing them than about anything else."

Rose smiled and said, "Talk to your mom."

Lily nodded. " Wait here for me."

Lily walked to her mother's study. She had no idea how things would be between them. "Mom?"

Ginny Weasley did not look up. She was busy writing something but she pointed to a chair indicating Lily to sit in it.

After a few minutes, Ginny looked up. She looked angry. "How could you do this? I've asked the Prophet to delay the release and they've agreed but in 3 days this will be what everyone talks about. How could you humiliate us like this?"

Lily went from scared to surprise to angry. She couldn't believe her ears. Her mother was more concerned about what other people would think than she was of her.

"That's what you care about? Your reputation?" Lily's hands were clenched into a tight fist.

"I care about you too. I have no control over whom you decide to sleep with. But I do have some control over where this family stands in society," Ginny said, getting up from her seat behind her desk.

"I'm not sleeping with him. We broke up. No, he broke up with me expecting this reaction from you and dad. I was so mad at him. I can't believe he was right," Lily said this to herself more than her mother.

"You can't see him anymore. I can tell people that we didn't know and once we did, you broke up with him. The matter will blow over especially after you leave to New York for your internship," Ginny said with a smile.

"I can't believe you. You're shipping me off to New York," Lily said and walked out of the door slamming it behind her.

Lily walked up to her room. Rose was waiting for her.

"I heard everything. She's just upset. She doesn't know what she's saying," Rose explained.

"Stop! Take me to Drake. I need to see him," Lily said. Her voice was laced with desperation.

Rose nodded and led her cousin to Drake's house. They apparated right in front of the apartment and Rose used her key to unlock to door. She glanced back at Lily who looked confused.

With the door unlocked, Rose walked in first. No one seemed to be at home. Scorpius was home with his family and Albus was at her place calming Uncle Harry down.

"Hello? Drake?" Rose called out.

Drake's bedroom door opened and Drake walked out. "Hi, Rose." Rose knew that Albus told him about the newspaper article. He looked drained and sad.

"There's someone here to see you," Rose said and opened the front door so that Drake could see Lily.

Lily stood at the entrance. She didn't know what to do but shifted her weight from one foot to the next waiting for Drake to say something.

Drake didn't.

Rose caught Lily's arm and pulled her into the apartment. She gave her an encouraging smile and walked out.

"I'm going home," Rose announced looking at the two of them. She closed the door behind her.

Lily stood rooted to the spot. Drake cleared his throat and said, "So?"

That was all Lily needed. She ran to Drake and with all her strength practically lunged at him and started to cry. Drake hugged her back with his chin resting on the top of her head. His hands were moving up and down her back.

"I'm so sorry. You were right. I can't believe she said that to me," Lily said through her tears.

Drake placed a finger below her chin and tilted it upward so that he could see her. He had no idea whom the "she" was or what "she" said. Lily was talking to him she was here- with him.

Lily smiled and touched his face with the tip of his fingers. She had missed him.

Drake hesitatingly bent his head for a kiss. Lily closed her eyes and waited for his lips to meet hers. Her lips parted and readily received Drake's mouth. The kiss was filled with so much passion that Lily started to feel dizzy.

Lily went with her instincts and grabbed the lapels of his shirt. Pulling him closer but the difference in their height made it difficult. Drake broke the kiss and Lily groaned with disappointment. Drake lifted Lily up in one swoop and carried her to his bedroom kicking the door close behind him.

Drake laid Lily on his bed and sat next to her. Lily placed her hands behind Drake's head pulling him in for another kiss. But Drake stopped her and instead took Lily's hands and kissed it.

"I'm sorry that I hurt you. I love you and I need you to forgive me. I can't not be with you anymore," said Drake with sincerity.

"No, I'm the one who should be apologizing. My parents reacted exactly the way you thought they would. My mom wants me to breakup with you and she didn't know that we weren't already…broken up." Lily paused looked at Drake angrily, "What am I saying? You hurt me. You thought I'll choose my parents over you." Lily tried to get up.

"Please, we can get through this," Drake moves his mouth closer to Lily's and touches her lips with his. Very softly and tenderly. A shiver ran down Lily's spine and she parts her lips in response.

Drake takes to opportunity to kiss her more thoroughly and deeply. Lily's hands snake their way to Drake's head to pull him towards her more. Drake lays himself on top of Lily.

A deep moan escapes from Lily's mouth as Drake explores Lily's neck. She always loved the sensation that his stubbles created when they touched her neck.

Drake's hands moved down her body and started to pull the fabric of her shirt upward so that he could touch her stomach and breasts. Lily was surprised. He always kept the physical part of their relationship limited. Kissing was something that Drake was always ready for but when it came to going "all the way", Drake said that he wanted their first time to be perfect and, surely, not at Hogwarts.

Lily moved her hands to Drake's chest and pushed against it. Immediately, Drake jumped up into a kneeling position while saddling her thighs.

"I'm sorry. I was going too fast," Drake apologized. He started to get up.

"No. No," Lily said. She put her hands out and clutched the material of Drake's shirt pulling him back towards her. "You're entire weight was on me. I couldn't breath."

Drake settled slowly on top of Lily again and flipped her over so that Lily was on top.

"Oh!" Lily exclaimed. She quickly pulled her shirt over her head, threw it to the floor and adjusted herself on top of Drake.

"I missed you," Drake said.

"Me too. Promise me that you'll never leave me again," Lily said as she started to unbutton Drake's shirt.

Drake stopped Lily from her task by holding her hands. She looked up at Drake's face. "I will never leave you again." Lily smiled at Drake and continued her task of unbuttoning his shirt.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Drake asked.

"Yes. I need this. Please, I'll never regret this if that's what you're thinking. I want to give you everything. I want to prove to you that this is it. There is nobody for me but you."

Drake shrugged off his shirt and pulled Lily down.

* * *

"Harry? Mate? You feeling better?" Ron asked concerned.

Harry was lying on the sofa with a wet cloth on his face. He was still recovering from the shock. "My daughter has been dating this boy and I never knew. I'm an awful parent," Harry said sadly.

"Come on. I told you about what Rose and Scorpius did and how Draco found out. We all do the best we can. Unfortunately, our kids are smarter than us," Ron said.

"They are of age. We have to let them make their own decisions," said Hermione.

"And mistakes," Ron added.

Hermione rolled her eyes and looked at Harry. "You're not upset about…the other thing?"

"You mean the product of Bellatrix and Snape thing?"

Hermione gave an uncertain smile and nodded.

"I don't know what to say. I'm grateful to Snape but that doesn't mean that I forgive him for treating me like crap. He made potions a living nightmare and the detentions and the occlumancy. Add that to the fact that, he did indirectly kill my parents."

"You know Drake is nothing like his grandfather or grandmother," Ron said sensibly.

"I know but after this comes out, the paparazzi are going to be all over us and bringing back all these memories that I had hoped we had put away forever. And how do I know Drake is not a horrible person. If he hurts Lily in anyway…." Harry's voice trailed off.

"I think you should get to know him. Drake is pursuing her.' Ron said

"So at this point, they aren't together?" Harry asked.

"As far as we know." Hermione said.

"But we have a bigger problem at hand," said Ron. Harry and Hermione looked at him in expectation.

"Who told the Daily Prophet and why?"

* * *

Lily woke up a little disoriented. It took her a few seconds to remember where she was. She glanced at the sleeping figure next to her. Drake was asleep on his stomach facing her, snoring lightly, with one hand under his pillow and the other on Lily's waist.

Lily slowly slipped out of bed taking the bed sheet with her. She wrapped it around herself and headed to the bathroom. She vaguely remembered Rose telling her how the bathroom was common to both Scorpius's and Drake's bedroom. She closed and locked both the doors once she was inside.

Hoping she did not wake anyone up, Lily slowly opened the faucet and let the water run. While she was waiting for the warm water to come so that she could wash her face, she looked at the mirror. Drake had left small love bites on her neck and a larger one over her left breast. She blushed at the memories of what just happened. After washing her face and brushing her hair, Lily exited the bathroom.

"Did you unlock the other door?" Drake asked Lily.

Lily jumped up. She did not expect him to be awake. "No. I'll do it," Lily said. Then, she walked back to the bedroom readjusting her eyes to the dark. Drake was sitting on the bed wearing his black boxers and nothing else. Lily swallowed and approached him holding the sheet around her tightly.

"Hey," Lily said when she reached him.

"Hey," Drake said while getting up and then he kissed her. He caught both her wrists and pulled them gently so that her bed sheet would fall.

But Lily objected. "No, I can't. I have to get back home. It's almost 11:30 pm. I need to talk to my parents."

Drake kissed her again but it was more forceful and passionate than before. Lily lost her ability to think and the sheet fell in a heap around her feet. Drake's hands started to massage lily's neck and he saw the love bites that he had left.

"I think we need to heal those before you go home," Drake chuckled. He took his wand and said a spell and touched each one of the bruises.

"I think I'll leave this one behind," Drake said pointing with his wand at the mark above her breast. Lily became shy and embarrassed at the same time.

"Why don't you change and I'll use the rest room," Drake said.

After Drake walked to the bathroom, Lily dressed in a hurry not sure when he would reappear again. After she finished, she knocked on the door and it sprung opened immediately.

"Done?" Drake asked.

"Yup. I'm going home," Lily said.

Drake walked her to the door and said, "I love you, you know that, right?"

"I love you too," Lily said.

"We'll talk tomorrow and just to clarify things, we're together. In case, your parents ask," Drake said.

Lily walked out and then apparated to her parent's place.

* * *

Harry and Ginny Potter were in their room. They were having a big argument. Lily heard the shouting the second she entered the house.

Lily hated that they were arguing over her. She was still angry with her mom but whatever happened was her fault too. She bravely marched to her parent's bedroom. She knocked and entered in after her father yelled a loud "Yes".

"Lily?" Lily heard her father ask.

Lily went to her father and hugged him. "I'm sorry. I should have told you but he knew you would hate him even before you knew him. He's a great guy and I love him," Lily said.

"I thought you were broken up," Ginny said dryly to Lily.

"We were but we aren't now. We are together," Lily said.

"Do you know what's going to happen? He's going to break up with you the second things get tough. That's what men do, Lily. When the going gets tough, the men get moving."

Harry looked at his wife with narrowed eyes. "What does that mean?"

Ginny just shrugged and turned around.

Harry looked at his daughter and said "Honey, wait for us in your room. Your mom and I need to talk."

Lily went out of the room. Harry went up to his wife and grabbed Ginny's arm, forcibly turning her around. "What's wrong with you? You act like I've never been there for you. I'm always there. Why don't you see that?"

Ginny turned away from Harry but he spotted the tears in her eyes. "I don't know. I can't trust you."

"I will tell you this a million times a day if that's what you want. I love you and I always will. I have never cheated or even wanted to cheat on you. I've always been there for you and the kids. Tell me why you've been this way. You're hurt and I've never meant to hurt you. And if I have, I'm sorry. Talk to me," said Harry shaking his wife. He wanted her to look at him. Really look at him.

Ginny eyes started to overflow with tears. Those silent tears turned into heartbreaking sobs. Harry held his wife close to him and stroked her hair, rubbed her shoulders and whispered words of love into her ear.

"I think we made a therapy breakthrough," In spite of the seriousness of the situation, both Harry and Ginny chuckled.

"We did not have anything to talk about. The kids left and I thought I was useless and you didn't need me anymore," Ginny said wiping her eyes.

"I'll always need you."

* * *

Hi everyone. Thanks for all the reviews. I hope the chapter wasn't too long. I just wanted the flow to be there.

And for anyone who is wondering, Ginny has something called "Empty nest syndrome."

I'll update soon. 


	11. Chapter 11

Scorpius went to the Auror office along with Drake. They both had a meeting with Ronald Weasley.

"Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Edwards, here to see Mr. Weasley," Drake said to the secretary at the reception area.

"Have a seat. I'll buzz you in when he's ready to see you," the receptionist said.

"Thanks," Drake said.

Scorpius and Drake sat down nervously. A few minutes later, Ron stuck his head out and called out, "Drake. Scorpius. Come on in," Said Ron.

After they are were sufficiently seated, Ron asked, " So, what's this meeting about?"

Drake cleared his throat, "We're here to hand in our withdrawal from the auror academy, Sir."

Ron frowned and looked at them intently. "What do you mean? I have your files here and you both have more than acceptable grades at Hogwarts and," Ron said pointing at Drake, "For the last 2 semesters that you've been here, you've done very well and the trainers have highly recommended you."

"I'm happy to hear that but I just don't think this is the place for me anymore," Drake said. Scorpius dared not say a word.

"I think I need to talk to you both individually. Drake, can you wait outside?"

After Drake left, Ron looked at Scorpius. "Does my daughter know anything about this?"

"No. She doesn't. I'm going to talk to her tonight. I've been working with my father and I like it at Malfoy Industries. I don't think I want to become an auror anymore."

"You don't think or you know for sure?" Ron questioned.

"I know for sure," Scorpius said with certainty.

"OK. If you are sure, but don't you think you should talk to Rose first?" Ron asked.

"No. I'm sure. I don't want to be an auror," Scorpius said.

Scorpius got up and shook Ron Weasley's hand. He cleared his throat and said gratefully, "I thank you for the opportunity, sir."

"My pleasure. Send Drake in," Ron said.

After Drake walked in and shut the door, Ron asked him to be seated.

"So, what's your story?" Ron asked. "Keep it short and sweet. I have an appointment in 10 minutes."

"I'm quitting because this is not going to work out for me."

"For you?" Ron asked his eyebrows knitted in deep concern.

"For Lily and me." Drake said truthfully.

"I see. Don't you think you'll regret this one day."

"No. I'm sure I won't. I already have an apprentice position as potion maker in St. Mungos."

"That's a difficult position to obtain." Ron said impressed.

"I know and I think it's a sign that I need to move on. I'm good at making potions and this way I can be at home more," Drake said.

"Does Lily know?" Ron asked.

"No. But I'll tell her tonight."

Ron smiled at the thought of two women screaming in the apartment. He was so glad that he wasn't in their position.

"OK. Let me walk you out. Drake walked over first and opened the door for Ron Weasley. Ron walked out holding a golf bag. Drake walked to the reception area where Scorpius jumped to his feet. At that exact moment, the elevator door opened. Draco Malfoy walked out.

"Oh, good. I'm double parked so let's make a move," Draco said to Ron. Then turning to his son he said, "You'll handle the meetings this afternoon on your own right?"

Scorpius had a goofy smile on his face and nodded affirmatively. Drake clapped Scorpius's back then gave him a smile and said, "Your dad and Rose's dad are cutting work to play golf. I'm sure you'll have no problems asking for Rose hand in marriage."

Scorpius placed his hand on his pant pocket and felt the ring box. He looked at the closed elevator and said worriedly, "After tonight, we'll see if I even have to."

Drake and Scorpius left and went to their respective work places. They returned to their apartments late in the evening and prepared an elaborate dinner together. They did not speak to each other but were thinking about how they would tell their girlfriends about the change in their career plans.

Rose and Lily arrived at 6:30pm. Drake and Scorpius knew that they couldn't go through dinner without telling them. Drake took Lily to his room and Scorpius did likewise.

------

"Why didn't you tell me?" Lily asked after Drake told him about leaving auror training.

"Because this has nothing to do with you," Drake said.

"Really? Oh, this has nothing to do with me?" Lily asked doubtfully.

Lily went to Drake and dragged him to a nearby chair. She hated looking up at him. She sat on his lap with each leg on either side of him and asked, "Real reason. No lies."

Drake signed, "I promised you that I'll never leave you. After the training, I'll be gone days, weeks and, maybe, months at a time. No contact for long periods. I can't do that."

"I would have managed if you had to travel as an auror. I'm not helpless, you know," Lily said with a laugh. "I know what it means being an auror's wife. My mom is one. You remember that, don't you?"

"I know but see your mom now I didn't want that to happen to us besides I can't leave you. It's me who is helpless without you," Drake said and kissed Lily gently on her lips.

Lily placed her hands on either side of Drake's face. "Are you sure? Are you going to be happy being a potion maker?"

"Of course. It's still noble work and I'll be a Healer potion maker so I'll be helping people. And I'll still be home every night," Drake started to kiss Lily's neck.

"Humm. Yeah. I'm losing my train of thought so you might want to stop kissing me or kiss me and don't talk," Lily said, her eyes closed. Her hands were around Drake's neck and she moaned.

"My pleasure," Drake said. He caught the hem of Lily's shirt and pulled it over her head.

"You know, I've always wanted to do this in a chair," Lily said.

"Your wish is my command, my dear innocent Lily," Drake said.

-----

At the other end of the apartment:

"WHAT? You made this decision all by yourself. You did not even consult me," Rose shouted at Scorpius.

Scorpius didn't say a word. He knew when she started to shout, it was better to just let her scream it all out and then he'll have a chance to talk without interruption.

"You wanted to be an auror for the last four years of Hogwarts. You did all the course work for the training and now you decide that auror training was not for you. How can you commit yourself to something for years and then decide it's not working out for you?"

Rose stared at Scorpius waiting for an answer. But she wasn't prepared for what Scorpius asked.

"Marry me?" Scorpius asked.

"What? Are you insane?" Rose asked angrily. "if this is your idea of a joke. Let me tell you…"

"No. I love you. That's never going to change. I wanted to be an auror because that was what every good student wanted to become. That or be a Healer. I knew Healer was not what I wanted so I decided that Auror was it. But after being at Malfoy Industries, I knew that was where I wanted to be." Scorpius walked over from his seat to where Rose was standing, he bent down on one knee and said lovingly, " I know this, what I feel for you, is forever."

Scorpius took Rose's left hand and took out the ring box from his pocket, "I did not plan to propose today. I bought the ring and I wanted to plan this romantic dinner but … I love you, Ms Rose Weasley. Will you marry me?"

Scorpius opened the box to reveal a beautiful solitary diamond and platinum ring.

Rose stood still and did not move a muscle. Scorpius was starting to get nervous. He said, "You don't have to answer now, you can think about it."

"Yes." Rose interrupted Scorpius.

"What?" Scorpius asked unsure if Rose said "yes" to needing more time or to the proposal.

"Yes. I'll marry you," Rose said with tears in her eyes.

Scorpius rose and gave his fiancée a kiss. HE then, took the ring and placed in on the ring finger of her left hand.

Rose bit her lower lip to prevent the tears from falling. She couldn't look at Scorpius because she knew she wouldn't be able to control her emotions if she did.

"I think I should have asked your dad first," Scorpius said.

Rose laughed and turned to Scorpius. "We can tell them tomorrow. Together."

* * *

_**Engagement party (3 months later)**_

Drake had his arm around Lily's shoulders while they were watching the engaged couple dance. Lily kept whispering to Drake who laughed every time. Lily was making comments and jokes about the couple on the dance floor. It such an intimate moment that Harry felt like he was intruding. But he couldn't help and think, that his daughter could be next. She could marry Drake soon.

Harry and Ginny's relationship had improved dramatically these last few months but Ginny still had a problem with her daughter dating Drake. She was courteous enough but anyone could see her displeasure.

Ginny Potter was standing next to Hermione and Ron Weasley. She turned to Hermione and asked, "Who would have thought those two would get married?"

"I didn't," Hermione said. "But I'm happy. They are so good together. I'm actually more surprised that Ron and Drake are getting along."

"And you and Astoria," Ginny said a little jealously.

Hermione noticed the jealousy in Ginny voice but ignored it and instead said, "They are a nice family." She turned to Ron and said, "Honey, can you make sure that Hugo and his friends reach home safely. I think they just left. Owl them."

Ron nodded looking at his daughter dancing.

-----------------

Meanwhile, Lily was feeling a bit hot and stuffy in the room. She told Drake that she was going for a walk with Alex Malfoy and went to the balcony. She did not notice her mother following her.

"Have the paparazzi calmed down about Drake's grandparents?" Alex asked.

"It's better. But we still have a hard time going out in public. Just work and home,' Lily said sadly.

Once the Daily Prophet had broken the news, the people and press were all over them. She had assumed that the story would be old news in a few weeks. But she was wrong. It was like someone kept leaking story after story about Bellatrix and Snape. Their lives, past and she wasn't sure what to believe. Not that it mattered. Drake was the person that she loved. Nothing could ever change that.

"So, have you told him?" Alex asked Lily.

"No. I'm waiting a bit. Why worry him now?" Lily said.

"I would rather you tell him sooner than later. He has a right to know," Alex said.

"I know. I'm just so scared," Lily worried.

"If I were him, I'll be more angry that you kept this to yourself for 2 weeks than the fact that you're pregnant," Alex said.

Crash! Alex and Lily turned around startled. Ginny Weasley had dropped a wine glass on the floor of the balcony.

"Mother?" Lily asked. "Were you listening to Alex and I talking?" Lily was angry.

"You're pregnant?" Ginny asked.

Alex looked at mother and daughter. "I think I better go back in. I hear my mother calling," Alex lied.

"How dare you?" Ginny said.

"How dare I? How dare you listen to my private conversation?" Lily asked.

"You're having his baby? His baby?" Ginny asked, his eyes were starting to get wild.

Lily was getting nervous and moved away from her mother. "We'll talk about this later," she said.

"How could you? He's a murderer," Ginny said.

"Whom are you talking about? I'm going inside."

Luckily, Alex showed up again with both Drake and Harry by his side. Drake rushed to Lily's side while Harry looked at Ginny. "What's happening?" Harry asked.

"Nothing," Lily said as she dragged Drake away. This was not the way she wanted him to find out about her pregnancy.

But Ginny wasn't going to let it go. She pointed at Lily and said, "She's pregnant. I overheard that Malfoy and her talking."

Drake and Harry looked in surprise at Lily. "When were you going to tell me?" Drake asked, slightly upset.

"I was going to after a few days. I'm still waiting for everything to sink in," Lily said.

"For now, let's go in. I don't want anyone to create a scene. This is Rose's engagement party," Harry said sensibly.

"She's having a murder's child," Ginny was starting to look strange.

Harry looked at his wife and gently took a hold of her shoulders. "We've spoken about this, honey. Take a deep breath. This person is not Bellatrix. His name is Drake. He was not even born when Fred died," Harry looked into his wife's eyes. She was starting to calm down.

Lily looked at her parents sadly. Drake put his arms around Lily and hugged her. Harry Potter had sat the two of them down a few weeks ago and explained that Drake's grandmother had killed Ginny's brother and she was having a hard time disconnecting the two. Medication was not an option at the time mainly because Ginny refused but after this incident, Lily knew that this would be the only solution. She saw her father lead her mother away from the balcony to the next apparation center.

Lily was sad but knew that this was the wake up call her parents needed. The healer at St. Mungo's would help her.

Drake and Lily had a lot to talk about later on but for now she hugged her boyfriend and cried.

------------------------

Scorpius was the happiest that he had ever been. He and Rose had finally decided on a date for the wedding. June 23rd. He couldn't wait. He kissed his bride-to-be and went to his father's side.

"Father?' Scorpius asked him.

"Your grandfather refused to come down for the celebrations, could you take a piece of cake for him? The old crud is in his room moping," Draco said.

"Sure," Scorpius told his father.

Scorpius went to his grandfather's room with a plate of chocolate cake.. He knocked but no one responded. Funny. No one seemed to be around. His grandfather locked himself up in his room ever since his grandmother died 5 years ago.

"Anyone there?" Scorpius asked loudly.

No Reply.

Scorpius looked around the room. The room was messy with clothes, shoes, newspaper clipping and magazines spewed all around the room. He looked at his grandfather's desk and saw a list of people with their numbers and address.

Ms. Fanny Grout.

Mr. Danny Randy.

Mr. Bumble.

Mr. Seamus Rupert.

Mr. Johnson L. Wilson.

Ms. Pat Patterson

The names looked familiar and with a start, Scorpius realized who they were. This was not good!

* * *

Thanks for the reviews. I have one last chapter and I'm done. 


	12. Chapter 12

Scorpius Malfoy left his grandfather's room and scanned the ballroom for his father. Rose saw Scorpius's angry face and went to him immediately.

"Scorpius, what happened?" Rose asked with concern.

"Darling, I don't think you need to worry about this. Why don't you talk to your parents?" Scorpius said.

"But…," Rose started to say as she placed a hand on Scorpius's shoulder.

Scorpius brushed her hand off and walked away from Rose. He was angry and upset. He did not want Rose to be concern.

Rose was upset about being so rudely dismissed but she was a stubborn Weasley and tried again. She walked fast and caught Scorpius's shoulder again.

"Talk to me," Rose begged.

Scorpius looks at Rose. He turns around and holds Rose's hand. "Honey, just enjoy the party. We'll talk later,"

Scorpius left Rose standing in the middle of the dance floor fuming. He better tell her or else!

********

"Dad?" Scorpius said.

Draco was busy talking to his guests. He turned around with a wide smile but the second he saw his son's face he knew something was wrong.

"Excuse me," Draco said to his guest and moved along with his son to a corner of the room where they were well out of anyone's hearing range.

"What is it?" Draco asked.

Scorpius showed his father the list and told him, "I saw this list in Grandfather's room along with their numbers and contact addresses."

"I'm going to kill him," Draco's pale face became red. He crushed the paper in his fist.

"Dad. Calm down. He isn't in his room anyway," Scorpius said

"When I find him I'm going to throw him out of this house," Draco said.

Astoria Malfoy walked towards the two Malfoys men and whispered, " What's happening?"

Draco filled his wife in on what was happening. She looked shocked and said, "There is nothing we can do now. So, let's join the party and have a family meeting after." She turned to her son and said, "Your fiancée is searching for you."

Scorpius moved away from his parents and walked towards Rose. She was near the buffet table looking at what she should eat. He walked up behind her and slid his hands around her waist and buried his face at the nape of her neck.

Without turning, Rose asked, "Are you ready to tell me what that was all about?"

Scorpius rubbed his nose on her soft skin and told her, "We'll talk about it later. I don't want to spoil your mood,"

"My mood is spoilt so tell me," Rose said.

"You aren't going to let this go, are you?"

"Nope. I'm as stubborn as my dad and proud of it."

Scorpius released her so that she could continue filling her plate. "You fill up your plate with food for the both of us and meet me out in the balcony and I'll tell you," said Scorpius.

"Really?" Rose's asked surprised.

"Yup. But on two conditions- One, you can't tell anyone and second, you can't be upset."

"You're scaring me. But Ok to both," Rose said

"Meet you in 10 minutes in the balcony," Scorpius said as he walked away. He spotted the person that he was looking for.

"Hey, Drake. A word," Scorpius asked.

Drake looked distracted and worried. Scorpius didn't ask him what was bothering him but said, "I found out who was feeding the press."

"Really? Who?" Drake asked Scorpius.

"It's Lucius Malfoy," Scorpius said.

**********

Drake looked a bit taken aback. "What? Why?"

"I don't know. My dad will talk to him tonight," Scorpius said.

"This has been a horrible night."

"At least we found out the leak," Scorpius tried to make Drake look at the bright side.

"That's not it. Lily's pregnant."

"What?" Scorpius shouted it out a bit louder than he intended and was drawing looks from his guests.

"Keep your voice down," Drake hissed to Scorpius.

"Sorry! What are you going to do?"

Drake ran his hand over his face and let out a sigh. "I'm not sure. I love her but raising a baby now. There's so much going on around us and I'm scared. I really am. I have no idea what to do. The right thing would be to marry her and raise this baby together. But what I really want to do is run away."

Scorpius looked at Drake sympathetically. "Think how scared she must be."

"I know," Drake said. "I'm going to find her and talk with her."

Scoprius went to the balcony to find Rose and tell her about his grandfather

*************

"I can't believe your grandfather would do this?" Rose said angrily.

"I know. He can be a crud."

"What did Drake say when you told him?" Rose asked.

"He has other things on his mind so I think this hasn't sunk in yet."

"Oh." Rose did not ask Scorpius to elaborate. "What do you think your father will do?"

"I sure this is the last straw. I'm sure my grandfather will be put in a home somewhere far away where he can't do more damage. That is if Drake doesn't sue him and try to get him thrown in Azkaban."

"I'm sure Drake won't do that," Rose said confidently.

"Let's go in. I want to dance with you, my love."

Scorpius took Rose's hand and kissed it. "Would you honor me and dance with this fool who is desperately and totally in love with you?"

Rose laughed and pulled herself up. She kissed his lips and put her hands around his neck. Scorpius puts his hands on Rose's waist and pulls her close. Rose rests her head on Scorpius's chest and they danced. It was magical and Rose knew that she would cherish Scorpius and this moment for the rest of her life.

************

Harry Potter was in St. Mungo signing papers to admit his wife. Ginny had become delusional and Harry felt that she needed to be monitored by Healers.

Albus and James were standing next to their father. Harry had aged terribly these last few years. James had told his father to admit her a while ago but Harry refused. Ginny was the love of his life and admitting her in St. Mungo seemed like he had failed her.

Albus did not say anything to his parents but he knew his mother was not the same person these last few years. He stood by his father, sad that this was where his mother would be for the next few weeks or even the next few months.

"Thank you, Mr. Potter," the nurse said kindly to Harry.

"Can we see her?" Albus quickly asked.

"I think it would be best if you left her alone for a while. She needs time to get used to the place."

Albus nodded sadly and James walked towards the floo station. Harry and Albus followed him.

"So, you are going to be a grandfather?" James tried to lighten the mood.

"Yes. So it seems," said Harry. He had told the boys while filling the papers the Healers had given him mainly so that they would understand why Ginny had a complete breakdown.

"Are they getting married?" James asked.

"I'm not sure. But I need to have a talk with Lily tonight," Harry said. "I want her to know that she'll have my support no matter what happens."

"Drake loves her. I'm sure they'll be getting married or at the very least engaged soon," Albus said.

*************

Albus was right! But he never guessed how right he was. Drake and Lily were getting married. The next day!

Drake found Lily after the party and begged her to marry him. She had accepted wholeheartedly. They had decided a big wedding was not what they wanted so they were going to elope. Lily would tell her mother when the time was right.

"We need two witnesses," Drake said.

"Rose and Scorpius?" Lily asked her fiancé.

"I was thinking of Albus and Scorpius."

"Can't we have three witnesses?"

"No. I think two is the magic number."

"You can have Albus as your best man so that Rose and Scorpius can be our witnesses. That way no one is left out."

"Don't you need a maid or matron or something like that?"

Lily rolled her eyes. "Maid of Honor. I was thinking Rose could do that too."

"Fine."

Drake turned to Lily. They were both lying on her bed in the dark at the Potter mansion waiting for the rest of the family. "Are you sure you don't want to wait and get married? I know how you girls dream about big wedding."

"I am not wearing a white wedding dress looking 8 months pregnant!" Lily said outraged. "Besides, I'm sure the Weasley family will throw a huge reception for us."

Lily leaned over to kiss Drake. "Are you scared?" she asked.

"I'm nervous but I hope you know that when I said, "elope" that, meant just you and me. No crazy family or friends."

Lily smiled at Drake. "I love you but I'm not going to make my parents sad by eloping without telling them."

Just then they heard voices coming from the living room.

"They're back," Lily said as she jumped out of bed and ran to the door. She looked back at Drake and said, "Come on."

Drake followed Lily down the stairs to the living room and saw the three Potter men.

"Where's mom?" Lily asked.

Albus, James and Harry looked at each other but it was James who said, "Lily, we need to talk." James looked at Drake and said, " Can you excuse us for a few minutes?" The Potter men led Lily to the kitchen to answer Lily's question.

**********

Lily was sobbing and Drake was trying to calm her down. Harry saw Drake pull his daughter into a warm embrace and whisper into her ear. His hand was moving up and down Lily's back.

Harry was surprised when Lily told him that she was planning on eloping. He never imagined that this was how his only daughter would be getting married and he tried to explain she could still have a big wedding in spite of the circumstances.

Lily wiped her eyes and went to her father. "Daddy, Drake has to go. I'm going to walk him to the door."

"So, when are you planning on "leaving"? Harry asked.

"First thing tomorrow. I think something low-key would be best," Lily said.

Harry kissed her daughter's forehead and closed his eyes tightly. He couldn't believe that his baby girl was all grown up.

Lily walked out of the room pulling Drake behind her. Drake said his goodbyes while leaving the room.

"I cannot believe she's going to marry him," James said

"Why? He's loves her," Albus defended Drake.

"I know. But still. I though she would go off to university, work for a long time and then get married when she's 30."

"She can still do all that while she's married."

"With a kid? I doubt it," James said with a chuckle.

"Ass," Albus mumbled.

************************

"I cannot believe you did this," Draco shouted at his father.

"He was a shame to our family. Impure and he walked around this house like he belonged here," Lucius said, his voice dripping with venom.

"You are still the same narrow-minded person you've always been. I want you out. I've spoken to Ron and he's willing to hush this up for the family's sake but I've had it with you," Draco continued ranting.

"Calm down" Astoria told her husband.

"I will not calm down. He's out. Pack your bags, old man. You're going to an old age home far away from here. It's in Serbia actually. Luckily, they have room for you."

"I will not go. All this is mine," Lucius said.

"No. It's mine. Mom put everything in my name, remember? You get your 1000 galleons a year and that's it. I never want to see you again," Draco said as he kicked a chair on his way out.

Astoria followed her husband and tried to calm him down. He stood by the stairwell holding the banister. "Sweetheart, please calm down," She pleaded. She was scared that he would get a heart attack or stroke. She had never seen him so angry. Her husband didn't even look like her husband. He looked like a stranger. Astoria shook away that thought and hugged Draco. Her head rested on his back and her hands moved towards his chest and rested over his heart. She could feel his heartbeat racing and smell the perspiration through his shirt.

Draco's heartbeat finally slowed down, back to normal. He put his hands on Astoria's which were gripping his shirt tightly.

"What's for dinner?" Draco asked.

Astoria laughed out loud. "Dinner? That's all you have to ask about?"

Draco turned around and hugged his wife. "My father will be in a high security elderly home. I don't want to waste a single moment thinking about him. He's an arse and always will be," Draco said sadly.

Astoria looked up at her husband, "I'm sorry about this. I know this hurts.'

"I spent 2 decades trying to change people's image of the Malfoy family and he could have destroyed all that," Draco said.

"Hi," Scorpius said as he entered the room. "When's he going?"

"First thing tomorrow," Draco tells his son.

"Can I talk to him?"

"I don't know what you're expecting but go ahead,"

Scorpius enters his grandfather's room and sees him sitting in his old and worn rocking chair. Closing the door behind him, Scorpius goes up to Lucius Malfoy.

"How could you do this?" Scorpius asks but unlike his father, Scorpius's voice is gentle.

Lucius does not answer but continues rocking himself, back and forth. Back and forth.

"You owe him an apology. I cannot believe you contacted Rita Skeeter and those other reporters," Scorpius said.

Lucius looks up at his grandson. "I will never apologize to him. His grandfather was a traitor, his grandmother- a lunatic and a mudblood father."

Scorpius gives his grandfather a sad look. "I've never admired my father more than I have at this moment. He is nothing like you and I thank God for that! You are a pitiful and hateful person." With that Scorpius walks out and never looks back.

*************

**6 months later (The grand finale)**

"Push, Lily. Push," Rose tells her cousin.

"I can't. I'm so tired. Please, just tell the healer to take this baby out. The pain is horrible," Lily cries. Drake holds his wife's left hand while Rose is standing on Lily's right.

"Just a few more pushes. You're almost there," Drake urges wiping his wife's brow with a water soaked cloth.

"Ice chips?" Rose asks holding a cup.

"No. I want my mom," Lily begs.

"I'll get her," Drake says hurriedly rushing out.

Ginny Weasley was released from St. Mungos a couple of months ago. She was on several medications and had therapy twice a week as an outpatient. She had changed drastically the last few months and was as cheerful as she was when she first married Harry.

Harry Potter was surprised to have not noticed her change from the wonderful woman she was to a bitter, angry one. But the change was so gradual that no one, not even her own mother, realized that something was happening at a much deeper level than anyone realized.

"I'm here," Ginny Weasley said rushing to her daughter.

"Mom. I can't believe you did this three times," Lily said.

The healer interrupts. "Get ready. Another contraction and it looks like a big one."

"Push, honey." Ginny says.

After Ginny's return, Lily was the one who was the most reluctant to be with her mother. Ginny was almost sure that they would always be estranged but now, when her daughter needed someone the most, Lily had asked for her mother. It warmed Ginny's heart.

After the contraction had ended, Ginny pushed back her daughter's sweat drenched hair and looked deep into her eyes. Lily smiled.

"Thanks for being here," Lily said gratefully.

"I'll always be here, my baby girl," Ginny replies.

********

"No word?" Scorpius asks as he returns from the cafeteria along with Alex and James.

"No," Harry says. "But Ginny is in there. Lily asked for her." Harry continues to pace along with Ron and Hermione. Albus and Hugo were playing chess. Grandmother and Grandfather Weasley were dozing in a corner.

Rose rushes out. She's out of breath but manages to say, "It's a boy!"

The waiting room filled with Weasleys, filled with shouts of congratulations and hurrahs.

"I have to head back," Rose said.

The doors to the labor room swing open as Rose enters it and then swings back out as Ginny walks into the room holding a blue bundle.

"He's so beautiful," Ginny said to the audience surrounding her. She looks up and looks at Harry's tear filled eyes. And they share a "moment".

Harry mouths an "I love you" to Ginny who mouths back her response of "I do too".

Drake walks up to his mother-in-law and takes his brand new son from her. " Mark Darius Edward. That's his name."

Rose comes back out. "Lily wants her son back."

As Drake heads back to the labor room with his son, Rose hugs Scorpius. "I am never having children."

"That bad?" Scorpius asks.

"Horrible. It was the worst thing I've seen in my life. Almost sure I'm going to ask a Healer to tie my tubes."

Scorpius hugs Rose and says, "Don't worry. When we have a baby, I'll make sure they drug you up with all those Muggle medication. No pain."

Rose laughed and rested her head on Scorpius's chest. All the drama of the last year and half were finally over.

"You two!" Ron said to his daughter and future son-in-law. "You have less than 3 hours to get ready and be at the church."

Scorpius, Rose and the rest of the Weasleys rushed to the next family event. Rose and Scorpius's Wedding!

THE END

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Thanks for your reviews and sorry I took so long to update. Thanksgiving was busy. But I'm finally done. Reviews are appreciated.


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